Latest Nottingham Forest verdict as Vitor Pereira's Reds secure place in Europa League last 16 with aggregate win over Fenerbahce
22:02, 26 Feb 2026Updated 22:11, 26 Feb 2026
Callum Hudson-Odoi spared Nottingham Forest's blushes as the Reds booked their place in the Europa League last 16
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Callum Hudson-Odoi spared Nottingham Forest's blushes as the Reds booked their place in the Europa League last 16(Image: AFP via Getty Images)
Nottingham Forest survived a scare to clinch their place in the Europa League last 16 as they beat Fenerbahce 4-2 on aggregate, having lost 2-1 at the City Ground.
Vitor Pereira’s side went into the second leg of their play-off with a healthy 3-0 lead courtesy of last week’s superb showing in Istanbul. The Forest head coach had cautioned against complacency creeping in on the banks of the Trent, though, and had warned his players that the job was not done.
Fenerbahce clearly believed they were still in with a chance. Their supporters had travelled in their numbers and caused a very brief delay soon after kick-off by throwing flares on the pitch.
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The Reds simply shrugged it off and started with intent, as they had done in Pereira’s first two matches in charge. Even a horribly dislocated finger for Ryan Yates couldn’t hold Forest back as the midfielder simply got it strapped up and carried on as if nothing had happened.
But despite putting some tasty balls into the box, for all their positive play, Forest failed to really work Fenerbahce. And they were dealt a cold, hard shock when the visitors took the lead with 22 minutes on the clock.
Pushing high up the pitch as they tried to apply some pressure, the Reds were undone by a quick break. Kerem Akturkoglu connected with Sidiki Cherif’s ball and coolly slotted past Stefan Ortega to prompt a few fingernails being beaten inside the City Ground.
Had Fenerbahce brought their shooting boots, the evening could have gone even further downhill for the hosts before the break. Akturkoglu spurned a golden chance to double his team’s lead when he sent a shot wide from inside the box in the 40th minute, then Ortega denied Cherif in added time.
Having made six changes to his starting XI, to give players a breather, Pereira was forced to bring on some of his big-hitters for the second half. He made a quadruple substitution at the interval, but it made little difference as the visitors extended their advantage three minutes after the restart. Jair Cunha was penalised for a foul on Akturkoglu and the Fenerbahce man sent Ortega the wrong way from the spot for 2-0.
The tension Trentside was palpable. It took a big moment from Callum Hudson-Odoi to settle the nerves in the 68th minute. Found unmarked on the far side by fellow substitute Ola Aina, the winger drove home to make the aggregate scoreline a little more comfortable for Forest.
Igor Jesus and Omari Hutchinson were both thwarted in the closing stages amid a much better second half for the hosts. Here’s how Reds reporter Sarah Clapson rated the Forest players at the City Ground.
Stefan Ortega: Won’t be happy with the way Forest conceded the opening goal, and then there wasn’t a great deal he could do about the penalty. Generally good with his distribution, though. Rating: 6.5/10
Neco Williams: Slipped when he tried to intervene for Fenerbahce’s first goal. The Reds did have a few shaky moments at the back in the first half, especially. Wasn’t too far away with an effort at the other end after the break, though. Rating: 6.5/10
Jair Cunha: Not how he would have wanted his European bow for Forest to go. Unfortunate with the penalty incident as it looked harsh on first viewing. Had some decent moments, though - enough to suggest he should get an opportunity to add to his tally of four appearances for the season. Rating: 6.5/10
Morato: Didn’t exactly cover himself in glory for the opening goal, and that set nerves jangling among the home crowd. Shows how the Reds struggle when they turn to their second string, even if he did settle down a bit. Rating: 5/10
Murillo: Is normally so good with the ball he gives the impression he could play anywhere. A left-back the Brazilian is not, however, at least not on this occasion. Wasn’t at his best there. Rating: 6/10
Omari Hutchinson: Missed a great opportunity to equalise on the night when he was put clean through late on. Didn’t matter in the end, but those are the type of chances he (and his teammates) should be putting away. Rating: 7/10
Ryan Yates: Hard as nails. Bent one of his fingers out of shape when he landed on it in the opening few minutes, but simply got it strapped up and carried on as if nothing had happened. Couldn’t quite make the impact he would have liked, though. Rating: 6/10
Elliot Anderson: Even when Forest are not at their best, the midfielder is still capable of showing his class. Caused Fenerbahce problems when he got forward in the first half - it was just the Reds couldn’t make the most of those openings. Rating: 8/10
James McAtee: Had been so good in his previous European start, against Ferencvaros; this was a big opportunity to show the new manager what he is capable of. Instead, the summer signing fell completely flat and was hooked at the break. Rating: 5/10
Nicolas Dominguez: Busy enough without necessarily stamping his authority on proceedings. It became a tricky evening for the hosts to navigate once Fenerbahce had given them a scare. Rating: 6.5/10
Lorenzo Lucca: If the Napoli loanee was hoping to force his way into Pereira’s thinking for a start in the Premier League, he didn’t exactly help his cause. His teammates put some inviting balls in the box early on but he was too cumbersome to get on the end of any of them. Rating: 5/10
Subs
Ola Aina (for Murillo, 46mins): A terrific ball from the right to set up Hudson-Odoi. Forest needed that. Exactly the impact required from the substitutes. Rating: 7.5/10
Callum Hudson-Odoi (for McAtee, 46mins): Stepped up when the Reds needed him to. A delightful first touch and finish for his sixth goal of the season - and you could feel the relief around the City Ground. Rating: 7.5/10
Igor Jesus (for Lucca, 46mins): In an ideal world, the front man would have had a bit longer on the bench, to give him more of a breather. Given how well he has done in Europe, though, his services were required for the entire second half. Rating: 6/10
Ibrahim Sangare (Yates, 46mins): Said much about how the first half had panned out that Pereira felt it necessary to turn to his heavyweights. Impossible to overstate the importance of the Ivory Coast international to Forest. Rating: 7.5/10
Morgan Gibbs-White (for Dominguez, 84mins): A bit of a surprise Pereira decided to risk his talisman as Forest were near enough in the last 16 by the time he came on. Helped his team get the job done. Rating: 6/10
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Subs not used: Gunn, Willows, Ndoye, Bakwa, Milenkovic, Abbott.
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