Nottm Forest are Tottenham’s only survival hope as two problems diminish ending of 42-year wait | OneFootball

From a remarkable own goal to an unjustly disallowed second, Nottingham Forest had mixed fortunes in the 1-1 first leg of their Europa League quarter-final against Porto, but ultimately will have been satisfied with a draw before the return clash at the City Ground.

And there was another rollercoaster in the second leg, though the opening 12 minutes went better than Forest could have possibly imagined.

Forest were always likely to get more joy against former Southampton man Jan Bednarek than ex-Chelsea captain Thiago Silva, and the much weaker member of this centre-back partnership gifted the hosts a huge advantage with a red card for a brainless high challenge on Chris Wood.

This was somehow only the second red card of 30-year-old Bednarek’s career, with the first coming in that 9-0 loss to Manchester United in 2021.

Lightning was never going to strike twice with a Bednarek red card contributing to a 9-0 defeat, but Nottm Forest had more than enough chances to seal a first European semi-final in 42 years without so much tension.

Vitor Pereira‘s side quickly capitalised on their one-man advantage, with star man Morgan Gibbs-White’s effort from the edge of the area, via a significant deflection, beating Porto goalkeeper Diogo Costa.

Bednarek’s red card helped Gibbs-White to take full control of the second leg as the Forest standout was allowed to pull the strings with little resistance, and he created a string of openings that were ultimately not taken.

As has often been the case with Forest this season, the Premier League relegation strugglers were pretty good in three of the four quarters, though their good moments were undermined by their wastefulness in attack.

This is the main reason why Forest find themselves in such a desperate position in the Premier League, and this Achilles heel was even clear against a particularly fragile Porto side.

Murillo shot just wide from the edge of the area, Omari Hutchinson fired into the side netting, and Igor Jesus’ header at the back post from a corner went straight at the goalkeeper before Nicolas Dominguez’s header went wide as Forest once again lacked a cutting edge. This gave Porto hope.

The second half was great fun for the neutral, but it only came as a consequence of poor game management from Forest as they allowed the match to descend into a frantic end-to-end encounter.

And Forest had a huge let-off in the 56th minute as winger William Gomes, who was entirely unmarked at the back post, struck the crossbar from close range before the hosts just did enough to clear.

There were more self-inflicted nervy moments for Forest to get through, with Alan Varela being the second Porto player to strike the bar on the night as Pereira’s side crawled over the line against 10-man opposition.

Forest beating Primeira Liga leaders Porto over two legs is a coup, but to p*ss on their bonfire, the manner in which they broke their 42-year hoodoo is alarming when it comes to their hopes of securing Premier League survival.

Their Europa League run is proving a great distraction from the Premier League, though Aston Villa will be firm favourites to progress from their semi-final following their 7-1 aggregate thumping of Bologna and this does not take away from more pressing concerns in the fight to avoid relegation.

Leeds United should be okay after beating Manchester United and West Ham will also likely survive while performing better than their relegation rivals, so that leaves Spurs and Nottingham Forest.

Spurs have all the hallmarks of a doomed relegation side and looked no better in Roberto De Zerbi’s first game in charge, but if anything could give them hope, it is Forest.

Forest supposedly only have a 10 per cent chance of relegation, and they certainly have far more heart and defensive solidity than Spurs. However, their aforementioned Achilles heel could easily drag them into the bottom three if De Zerbi manages to get his timid side to wake up, especially following the potentially painful injuries suffered by Wood, Murillo and Callum Hudson-Odoi on Thursday night.