In a cruel twist of TV programming fate, it fell to two former Manchester City players to pass judgement on Nottingham Forest’s 1-0 victory over their old club on Match of the Day.
In fact, both Micah Richards and Joe Hart were playing for City the last time Forest beat them, in an FA Cup tie in January 2009, as Match of the Day host Gary Lineker was more than happy to point out.
Callum Hudson-Odoi latched on to a brilliant Morgan Gibbs-White pass before driving into the City penalty area and then firing a near-post shot past Edison to win the game for the hosts.
But it was Forest’s general organisation and defence that drew admiring glances from Richards and Hart in their post-match analysis.
Richards, a defender himself in his playing days, said: “I think the structure of the team was really good.
“We've seen Forest play with a five, a four and a three at times, it's been really fluid, but I think they had a clear plan for City.
“Here they had four at the back, Gibbs-White and Anderson in midfield, and ahead of them there was Hudson-Odoi and Dominguez playing wide of that midfield to deal with the one on ones down the side. And you are not gonna play through the lines.
“It is absolutely perfect - the defence know where they need to be, the midfield know where to be, the strikers know where to be.
Hart then took up the theme, adding: “You talk about this shape, and they always got 11 bodies behind the ball, knowing exactly what to do. And what really struck me is there was no desperation in their movement. They are so comfortable and their distances are so well drilled.”
Forest keeper Mat Sels lead the race for the Premier League golden glove award and Saturday’s 1-0 success means he has now kept 12 top-flight clean sheets this season, two ahead of Arsenal’s David Raya and three better off than Dean Henderson of Crystal Palace and Jordan Pickford of Everton.
Hart, a former goalkeeper himself, and discussing Sels and his two central defenders, added: “It’s extraordinary, it really is, but they fully deserve it. As a trio, Milenkovic, Morello and Sels, they've earned the right to be at the top of that (clean sheets) table.”
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