Match Report & Player Ratings: Nottingham Forest 1-2 Manchester City (Premier League) | OneFootball

Manchester City maintained the pressure on Arsenal in the Premier League title race by claiming a hard-fought 2-1 win over Nottingham Forest to extend their winning streak in all competitions to eight games.

After a slightly dull first-half, Tijjani Reijnders opened the scoring in the 48th minute and set off a frantic second 45 minutes. Omar Hutchinson equalised for the hosts soon after – but a Rayan Cherki strike in the 83rd minute sealed a City victory.

It was the hosts who had the first chance of the game in the sixth minute. Callum Hudson-Odoi cut inside and floated an inswinging cross into a dangerous area but neither Igor Jesus nor Morgan Gibbs-White could not quite stretch enough to make contact and tap the ball in.

Sean Dyche’s side were pressing the City backline aggressively, though Pep Guardiola’s men dealt with the press reasonably well, meaning the opening 20 minutes saw relatively few chances.

City’s first opening of the game came in the 22nd minute after they passed through Nottingham Forest’s press and let Rayan Cherki run at the defence. Unfortunately, the Frenchman could not quite decide between shooting and trying to find Erling Haaland, and the move petered out.

The home side mounted another decent spell of pressure over the next 10 minutes without creating any major openings. Frontman Igor Jesus caused problems with his physical hold-up play, and there was little space in between the lines for the likes of Phil Foden to work in.

City failed to up their pace of play in the final 15 minutes of the first-half, meaning the game was goalless at the interval.

There was a huge moment in the game at the start of the second-half. Jesus and Ruben Dias clashed when the former was running in behind, leading to the hosts appealing for the Portuguese defender to receive his second yellow card of the game.

Just seconds later, Reijnders made an excellent run in behind and he was found by Cherki, who had drifted very far infield. The Dutchman produced a very composed left-footed finish across John Victor’s goal, which nestled in the far corner of the net to give City a crucial lead.

The contest opened up following the goal as Cherki went on another amazing run in the 50th minute and fired a powerful strike at the Forest goal, forcing the keeper to tip the ball onto the post. However, City’s lead lasted just five minutes.

Forest mounted a brisk counterattack after Reijnders gave the ball away on the edge of their box. Gibbs-White played a good through ball to Jesus, who found Hutchinson unmarked at the back post. The young attacker fired his shot into the back of the net, giving Gianluigi Donnarumma no chance.

Forest tried to catch City on the break again just before the hour mark, with Hutchinson forcing Nico O’Reilly to make a foul on the edge of his box. The free -kick failed to cause any problems – as did most of the hosts’ set-pieces.

It was Sean Dyche’s side who were piling on the pressure as Neco Williams’ shot from range forced Donnarumma into a save. His parry fell into the path of Nicolo Savona but the young Italian blazed his effort over the bar.

City managed to wrestle back some momentum and had a massive chance in the 71st minute. Cherki, Foden and Haaland combined nicely on the edge of the box. Foden found himself with space in the penalty area and struck a low, driven shot at goal. Victor needed to make a strong stop with his leg to prevent the visitors from taking the lead.

The introduction of Savinho coincided with City’s best spell of the game, and they made the hosts pay in the 82nd minute from a well-orchestrated corner.

Foden put a whipped ball towards the back post and Josko Gvardiol headed back to Cherki. The Frenchman powerfully struck the ball into the corner of the net on the half-volley, the unsighted Victor in goal unable to save his effort.

Savinho had a chance to seal the victory at the start of added time as he beat William and drove at Victor’s net. Unfortunately, the Brazilian’s powerful strike was straight at the Forest goalkeeper.

Starting XI

Gianluigi Donnarumma – 6.5/10

Could not do anything about the Nottingham Forest goal. Flapped at one corner but the lack of quality in the hosts’ set-piece deliveries meant he was largely unthreatened. Once again, he played a simple game when on the ball.

Matheus Nunes – 6.5/10

Not quite at his best today. Let the fairly one-dimensional Hudson-Odoi cut inside a couple of times and looked slightly unsettled during the frantic second-half. Did not do anything majorly wrong but also did not show the quality he has consistently showed in recent months.

Ruben Dias – 6.5/10

Dias was largely solid against a tough opposition striker who looked to put pressure on the referee after their physical battles. The 28-year-old was potentially slightly lucky to stay on the pitch in the second half, though his initial caution was fairly soft.

Josko Gvardiol – 7/10

Like Dias, had to cope with a difficult battle against the very canny Jesus. Gvardiol’s higher rating stems from two main areas: his excellent passing play when under intense pressure, and his composed knock-down to set up Cherki.

Nico O’Reilly – 6/10

Struggled to make an impact going forward and was not particularly strong defensively. Forest looked to target him once he was on a yellow card – and he did not look overly comfortable against Hutchinson and Savona.

Nico Gonzalez – 6.5/10

Although he may not have put in a spectacular performance, City probably would not have won that game without Nico Gonzalez. The Spaniard ran hard in a very open second half, trying his best to protect the City defence against a pacy Nottingham Forest attack.

Tijjani Reijnders – 7/10

Was forced to come quite deep in possession at points, which does not particularly suit his skillset as gave the ball away ahead of Forest’s goal. However, he made his trademark run in behind from midfield to score the first goal of the game whilst City were largely struggling to create opportunities.

It was an interesting decision to take him off for Savinho in the 73rd minute; he perhaps needs to tidy up his in-possession work to play 90 minutes more consistently.

Bernardo Silva – 6.5/10

Silva’s importance to this victory was perhaps not visible to fans in the stands. The veteran midfielder provided a calming presence, making sure that Forest’s plan to stretch the game was not overly effective. Hopefully, he will begin showing more quality on the ball now that City’s defensive structure has become more solid.

Rayan Cherki – 9/10 (POTM)

Terrific as usual. Worked hard defensively, always looked to make things happen in possession, and seemed incredibly good at wiggling out of tight spaces. For a player so young to put such a well-established team on his back in a tricky away game and lead them to victory is an impressive feat.

Cherki’s assist for Reijnders for City’s opener showed great vision and composure and the 22-year-old summer signing showed great technique to strike a bobbling ball for the all-important winner. This is Manchester City’s next superstar.

Erling Haaland – 6/10

If fans were told that a big, physical striker had an enthralling battle with the two opposition centre-backs ahead of this game, most would have thought that striker was Haaland. However, the Norwegian had a rare off-day and was unable to create any major chances for himself as he usually does.

Phil Foden – 6.5/10

Had a tough game. The Forest defence was so compact in the first-half that his opportunities to receive the ball between the lines were few and far between. At the start of the second-half, the game was too transitional for him to make an impact but he grew into the contest slightly in the latter stages. Executed City’s set-piece plan well, playing a key part in the winning goal.

Substitutes

Savinho – 7/10

The Brazilian was not overly impactful as an individual but City’s improved performance once he entered the fray is undeniable. The more controlled first-half would have suited him slightly more – but he is beginning to build some momentum once again.

Nathan Ake – 6/10

Came on to sure up the defence in the latter stages and did not put a foot wrong.