Nottingham Forest went down a man, then a goal, and will still feel unlucky to only take a point from a 1-1 draw with wobbly Brentford at the City Ground on Sunday.
Moussa Niakhate was sent off in the 56th minute after VAR review and Brentford immediately cashed in via Christian Norgaard to put a point in jeopardy.
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But Nicolas Dominguez answered quickly on a nice move with Tyler Toffolo and Morgan Gibbs-White, and the Tricky Trees came close to three points despite their man disadvantage before settling for their fifth point in the last four Premier League games.
Forest’s eight points have them 11th on the Premier League table, a point and two places above Brentford. Thomas Frank’s Bees are spiraling just a bit, with long-term injuries (Rico Henry and Kevin Schade) piling on top of Ivan Toney’s gambling ban which will have him out until January.
Brentford teetering over real worry, Forest show mettle
Thomas Frank’s Brentford have been very, very good since the Bees moved into the Premier League, to the extent that there’s been real talk about whether they’ll be just fine selling Ivan Toney when he returns from suspension. The team’s lack of cutting edge during a now five-match winless streak — which could be seven given a penalties win over Newport County in the League Cup — proffers a hearty, “Not if you want to look like the Brentford we love.” That the Bees struggled to score at 11v11 at a tricky — pun intended — Forest is not a cause for alarm but looking second-best while down a man for 34 minutes plus 13 minutes stoppage? Oof. Brentford is 1W-5D-3L since beating Fulham and their opponents list has some tough outs but points have been there for the taking: Palace, Newport County, Bournemouth, Newcastle, Arsenal, Everton, Forest.
And that’s without noting a real uneasy performance from until-now steady Forest keeper Matt Turner! Forest, meanwhile, should be buzzing from their performance, especially the midfield. Nicolas Dominguez, Orel Mangala, and Ibrahim Sangare justified the exclusion of Morgan Gibbs-White when it came to midfield control, but the super sub job done by ‘MGW’ — the entry pass to set up Tyler Toffolo’s assist and a game-saving, lung-bursting, slide-tackling backtrack to stop a late Brentford counter were everything to the earned point.
Nottingham Forest vs Brentford final score
Goals: Norgaard (58'), Dominguez (65')
Red card: Niakhate (56')
Matt Turner reaction — Forest ‘response amazing,’ proud of personal bounce back
“Personally feels like two dropped but at the end of the day you have to take the positives on it. I look myself in the mirror on that first goal and I know I’ve gotta be better for teammates especially in that moment right after getting the red card. For us to concede in the fashion that we did, I shoulder that burden for sure. The response was amazing, some unbelievable individual plays down the stretch. Every point is crucial in this league. It feels like two dropped, but it’s a weird one.”
“Yeah, it was a terrible start for me in the second half in general. The ball was slow. I wasn’t getting it out of my feet and he was pressing me really hard. I was a little bit worried but I tried to hold back a little because I knew he was going to win it. I’m glad VAR didn’t intervene. But I’m proud of myself, also because of my response the rest of the game, keeping it a 1 and coming for some crosses late to relieve pressure.”
Nottingham Forest vs Brentford player ratings
This was a midfield tussle, and both sides will feel they acquitted themselves well.
Special nod to Brentford backs Nathan Collins and Kristoffer Ajer, the latter showing his versatility by playing on the right, for their roles pushing the Bees forward on a day the forwards weren’t super sharp.
Nottingham Forest vs Brentford player ratings (fotmob.com)
Nottingham Forest vs Brentford player ratings (fotmob.com)
65th minute GOAL — Nicolas Dominguez — Forest 1-1 Brentford
Guess this game needed the red card for both teams to find their edge.
Tyler Toffolo zips down the left to get a slick entry pass from substitute Morgan Gibbs-White, and the back spins a cross toward the penalty spot.
Center mid Nicolas Dominguez, who has been a force defensively for Forest, turns the cross over Mark Flekken with an expert header at the near post.
Game remains on.
58th minute GOAL — Christian Norgaard — Forest 0-1 Brentford
The resulting free kick off Niakhate’s foul leads to a goal, but will it withstand VAR review?
Whipped-in service is nodded home by Christian Norgaard, and the lines are drawn... he’s onside!
All to do for Forest now.
56th minute RED CARD — Moussa Niakhate
Yoane Wissa has won a free kick off of Moussa Niakhate, but things get worse for Forest as VAR wants another look at the foul.
The foul is now a sending-off for Niakhate, who was on a yellow card and initially escaped a deeper penalty.
Forest will be down to 10 men for 33-plus minutes.
Halftime stats, analysis — Nottingham Forest 0-0 Brentford
Not much has happened since an early Nottingham Forest goal lasted all of a moment due to the assistant referee’s flag.
Ibrahim Sangare has been bright for Forest in and out of possession and looks like he could be the spark. He may have to be considering Morgan Gibbs-White is on the bench (So is Joe Worrall for the defense, but that hasn’t been an issue yet).
Brentford looks a bit like a team in a slump. The Bees are trying to play their system — that’s clear — but there’s a lack of confidence. All that said, Thomas Hickey and Keane Lewis-Potter worked a nice bit down the left side to inspire thoughts of better for Brentford and the Bees nearly went ahead on a stoppage-time goal mouth scramble.
Possession’s 50-50 and Brentford has the xG edge at 0.40-0.18 presumably due to the aforementioned scramble. Shots are 3-3 and this is anyone’s game.
How to watch Nottingham Forest vs Brentford live, stream link, time
Kickoff: 9 am ET, Sunday (Oct. 1)
TV: USA Network
Online: Watch online via NBCSports.com
Nottingham Forest lineup
🔁 Three changes from #MCINFO.
— Nottingham Forest (@NFFC) October 1, 2023
🇧🇷 Murillo makes his debut.
Our line-up to face @BrentfordFC.
📋 #NFOBRE
Brentford lineup
Your Bees to face Forest 🐝#NFOBRE | #BrentfordFC pic.twitter.com/5REnH7i34v
— Brentford FC (@BrentfordFC) October 1, 2023
Focus on Nottingham Forest, injury news
OUT: Danilo (thigh) | QUESTIONABLE: Nuno Tavares (groin)
Focus on Brentford, injury news
OUT: Ivan Toney (suspension), Ben Mee (calf), Rico Henry (torn ACL - out for season), Kevin Schade (adductor), Mikkel Damsgaard (knee), Josh Dasilva (hamstring), Shandon Baptiste (shoulder)