When Nottingham Forest needed them most, their most important players stood tall in spectacular, memorable fashion in Manchester.
This always felt like the perfect stage on which to shine for Morgan Gibbs-White and Elliot Anderson.
Manchester City are among the clubs who have been credited with an interest in both players. This summer, Anderson will almost certainly be part of England’s World Cup squad in North America while Gibbs-White will still be hoping to stage a late bid to persuade Thomas Tuchel he deserves a call-up too.
But this was a night when two outstanding goals from the duo had more of an immediate impact for their club, as Vitor Pereira’s side fight to avoid relegation.
In three previous visits to the Etihad Stadium since securing promotion via the Championship play-offs in 2022, Forest had not managed to score a goal. They had lost those games by an aggregate score of 11-0.
When Gibbs-White finally ended that run, it was with a goal of exquisite quality, as he crossed his right leg over his left to deliver a brilliant back-heeled finish into the back of the net.
When Rodri gave City a 2-1 lead six minutes later, it felt as though Pep Guardiola’s side would hold out for the win they craved to sustain their battle with Arsenal for the title. But it was Forest who showed their character again.
Anderson has been a dynamic driving force during a troubled season. One area where he could contribute more is with goals and he picked the perfect moment to deliver his second of the season, as he bent a precise finish inside the post from outside the box to level for a second time.
It required another of Forest’s most valuable assets, Murillo, to make a vital clearance off the line, with the last kick of the game, to fend off the home side.
“He (Gibbs-White) is a special player. He smells the spaces, he smells the opportunities — it was a beautiful goal. But Morgan is not only a fantastic player, he is a leader. He has the character that we need,” Pereira said in his post-match press conference. “He is a fighter and this is the spirit I want to see in my team. Murillo was the same at the end.
“Elliot, I thought today that after 60 or 70 minutes, I would need to take him off, as I did not believe he would have the energy and intensity that we would need here. But it was a surprise for me, because he did.”
(Gareth Copley/Getty Images)
The point and the performance renewed hope and optimism for Forest. More importantly, it was enough to help them avoid the mental blow of dropping into the bottom three, after West Ham claimed a 1-0 win at Fulham. Forest climbed out the relegation zone with a 3-0 win at Anfield in November and this felt like another significant moment.
Forest have now amassed 28 points from their 29 games. That would have been enough to keep them safe last season, when Leicester finished in 18th place — the final relegation spot — with only 25 points.
But it feels far more will be required to secure safety this time around.
In 2024, Forest avoided relegation with the lowest points tally of any Premier League side in history, with 32 (albeit including a four-point deduction for profitability and sustainability regulations breaches). Although 27 points would have been enough to finish above 18th-placed Luton Town (26 points).
Newcastle were relegated with 37 points in 2015-2016, which is the highest points tally of any team to finish in the bottom three over the previous ten seasons.
Over the last five years, the average points tally of those teams finishing in the final relegation berth, is just 29.6. So, on average, 30 points would be the rough benchmark to secure safety. Across the previous ten seasons to this one, that figure rises slightly to 33 points.
But with former Forest head coach Nuno Espirito Santo inspiring a fight for survival at West Ham — and with even a previously seemingly dead and buried Wolves side winning their last two games, against Aston Villa and Liverpool — it feels as though there will be more drama.
Tottenham — who face Crystal Palace tonight — and Leeds United are still in the relegation battle. But Forest might need three or even four wins from their remaining nine games, to ensure they get to play a fifth consecutive season of top-flight football.
That talks feels slightly less daunting after this performance, which saw Forest look more defensively solid, having reverted to 3-5-1-1 formation, that looks like a potential alternative for Pereira; a Plan B to the 4-2-3-1 that he had previously been more familiar to this side, under all three of their previous managers.
Pereira’s next big decision will come next week, when he must pick a team that is capable of getting a positive result in the first leg of Forest’s Europa League last-16 tie with Midtjylland next Thursday, while still keeping players fresh for a potentially even bigger game against Fulham at the City Ground three days later.
The same issue will arise the following week, when the away leg of that tie in Denmark is immediately followed by another massive fixture at Tottenham, again three days later.
Forest’s big players stood tall in memorable fashion in Manchester. But with nine Premier League games — and a European challenge — to sustain in the coming weeks, Pereira’s challenge is to ensure they have the energy reserves to do so again, for the challenges still to come.