JAKARTA – New Nottingham Forest manager Vitor Pereira made a sweet debut when his team destroyed Fenerbahce 3-0 in the first Europa League playoff at the Fenerbahce Sukru Saracoglu Spor Kompleksi Stadium, Istanbul, Friday, February 20, 2026 WIB early morning. The victory makes Forest in pole position to qualify for the 16th round.
Pereira is Forest’s fourth manager this season. Pereira, who was previously dismissed as manager of Wolverhampton Wanderers in November 2025 because his team was at the bottom of the English Premier League standings, agreed to sign a contract with Forest for 18 months. He replaced Sean Dyche who was fired last weekend.
Forest entered a very bad season after achieving success in the previous season. When starting the competition, Forest fired Nuno Espirito Santo who successfully brought Forest to the top so that they could compete in the Europa League. Espirito Santo’s position was then replaced by Ange Postecoglou who the previous season led Tottenham Forest to win the Europa League by defeating Manchester United 1-0.
However, Postecoglou only lasted 39 days before being sacked and the manager’s post was handed over to Dyche. Only Dyche also failed to lift Forest from the bottom of the table so he was dismissed after drawing 0-0 against Wolves and previously losing 3-1 against Leeds United. Dyche’s position, who managed Forest for 114 days, was then taken over by Pereira.
In his debut, Pereira immediately brought Forest to fight in the European competition. Not only that, Forest had to play away games by visiting Fenerbahce’s headquarters. It is obviously not an easy job because it is facing the Turkish elite team previously handled by Jose Mourinho. However, after dismissing Mourinho, Fenerbahce is now under the management of Domenico Tedesco, the former coach of the Belgian national team.
Even though he faced a tough opponent who had a row of top players led by former Inter Milan and Paris Saint-Germain defender Milan Skriniar, Pereira was able to bring Forest to overcome the pressure. Even Forest was able to break the host’s goal three times.
“I actually knew before I came that this team has a lot of quality players. They need good results. But above all, they have to be able to enjoy the game,” Pereira said as quoted by france24.
“So I just asked them to show it on the field. It turns out they were able to do it. They really enjoyed the game and we got a really good result,” said the Portuguese, who in his managerial career has ever architected Fenerbahce.
An impressive achievement in Pereira’s debut considering Tedesco fielded the best squad in the match. Former Chelsea midfielder N’Golo Kante and Marco Asensio, who used to be a pillar of Real Madrid, also started at Fenerbahce.
The victory at least made it easier for Forest to qualify for the playoffs and get a ticket to the last 16. Moreover, in the second match which was held at home at the City Ground, 27 February 2026 early morning WIB, The Tricky Trees only need a draw.
On the other hand, Fenerbahce had to work hard to get rid of Forest. They had to chase the goal deficit to turn things around and it was not an easy job for Tedesco.
In that match, Pereira showed a different Forest. They were able to dominate the game. Only Forest, which is currently ranked 17th or one strip above the relegation zone in the Premier League, has to wait until the 21st minute. Defender Murillo, who overcame the deadlock by breaking into the Fenerbahce goal.
The 1-0 lead made the Forest players more confident. They tried to consistently put pressure that made it difficult for the hosts to develop the game. Forest’s attack was able to trouble Fenerbahce’s defense.
The peak of striker Igor Jesus managed to increase Forest’s lead towards the end of the first half. Receiving an assist from Morgan Gibbs-White, the Brazilian forward was able to convert it into a goal and change the score to 2-0 in the 43rd minute. The advantage lasted until the first half was over.
Entering the second half, Forest did not change the game. They still dominated and did not give the opponent a chance to develop.
Even Forest broke into Fenerbahce’s goal when the match was only five minutes. The collaboration between Gibbs-White and Jesus again gave positive results. This time, Jesus gave an assist for Gibbs-White to finish.
The score changed 3-0 for Forest. After the goal, they did slow down the tempo of the game. Only Fenerbahce still had trouble breaking through Forest’s defense. No goals were scored and Forest’s three-goal lead remained unchanged until the final whistle.
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