Fantastic Forest hand Tottenham ninth loss in 18 Premier League games: Five things we learned | OneFootball

Tottenham suffered their ninth Premier League loss in 18 games this season as Antony Elanga’s first-half goal saw Nottingham Forest climb up to third in the Premier League table.

Here’s five things we learned from the game, from Hayters TV’s Dan Bennett at the City Ground…

Magnificent Murillo so important to Forest’s success

Not for the first time this season, central defender Murillo put in an excellent performance for Nottingham Forest. His combination of pace, power and aggressiveness, as well as a good understanding of the game, certainly helps Forest to play the way they do. Their direct and quick counter attacks can leave them exposed at times if they give it away when players are flooding forward, and having Murillo at the back to cut out the danger is crucial for Nuno’s side. He stopped so many of Tottenham’s attacks in Forest’s 1-0 win and was a real difference maker in a closely contested game.

Quality at the back proves to be the difference

It was not just Murillo who made the difference for Forest, however. The whole of the back four and the goalkeeper were crucial in helping their side keep a clean sheet. Spurs were always going to have moments of danger given the way they play and the quality they have in attack, but Murillo and co were physically strong, won so many duels in and around their own box and stopped Spurs getting their shots off from dangerous positions. And when they did break through, goalkeeper Mats Sels, who is also having a terrific season, was there to keep the ball out of the net.

Tottenham, on the other hand, were punished from some poor defending which allowed Forest to take the lead, with Morgan Gibbs-White allowed too much space to run into and Destiny Udogie’s decision to try and play Anthony Elanga offside punished, with the winger running through on goal and slotting past past Fraser Forster.

Johnson fails to make his former club pay

Sels’ biggest impact on the game was to keep out former Forest man Brennan Johnson not once, not twice, but three times. He made two good stops from the forward in the first half, making a smart low save and tipping another one over the bar, before his best moment of the game in the second half, rushing out to deny Johnson after the ball had fallen to him in the box. Spurs’ biggest chances all fell to the Welshman, who endured a frustrating afternoon in front of goal.

Maddison dropped again

James Maddison had 12 goal involvements in 17 Premier League games this season going into the game, but has endured a frustrating season having found himself in and out of the starting 11 under Ange Postecoglou. He was left out of the team again against Forest, coming on in the 64th minute but was not able to make a meaningful difference for his side. Postecoglou was perhaps understandably wary of Forest’s counter-attacking threat, with Maddison not able to offer much defensively, but they certainly missed his end quality in the final third.

Brilliant Boxing Day entertainment

The festive fixtures can often be drab affairs with tiredness during a hectic period of the season a factor, but this was anything but. Both sides showed a real willingness to attack, with Spurs playing in their usual front-foot style and Forest taking the chance to counter quickly when they won the ball back. It made for great entertainment and there really should have been more goals.