Igor Jesus Fires a Brace as Nottingham Forest Round Off Europa League Campaign with Win over Ferencvaros
Match Summary
- The home side were previously qualified to the knockout round.
- A Ferencvaros defender deflection gives Nottingham Forest a first-half lead.
- Igor Jesus' fifth goal in Europe puts Forest in command.
- Forward nets again with a clinical effort in the latter period.
- The midfielder rounds off a excellent performance with a spot-kick.
The Brazilian attacker scored twice as the Premier League side rounded off the league phase of the Europa League with a convincing win against Ferencvaros at the home stadium.
Forest had previously guaranteed a place in the knockout round play-offs and went into this fixture with a small chance of making the league's elite, although they required other matches to go their way.
Those results failed to materialize but this confident performance will give the supporters belief that their team can come through the home-and-away tie to advance to the last 16.
Kristoffer Zachariassen struck the upright with a headed effort inside the first 10 minutes for the away team – coached by former Tottenham striker Robbie Keane – but it was all Forest from that point forward.
They opened the scoring in the early stages when Ryan Yates' cross was deflected in by the defender and added a second four minutes later – Jesus firing an effort in at the far post for his 10th goal of the campaign.
Jesus' 11th came early in the second half when he timed a run perfectly to escape the defence and then place a shot past the goalkeeper.
The third strike ended the visitors' aspirations of mounting a recovery and instead the hosts scored again when the impressive McAtee converted a spot-kick after a infringement by the hapless Bence Otvos inside the penalty area on Dan Ndoye.
Europe's secondary club competition knockout phase play-off draw takes place on the final Friday of January (12:00 GMT), where Forest could be drawn against either the Turkish side or Panathinaikos.
"It is not just the result, there was that feel about it. I want these guys to do collectively well, the whole squad," said manager Sean Dyche.
"That was another stride forward, but it is a positive one."
Team Breakdown: Jesus Catches Eye as New Signing Watches On
Jesus has been a revelation for Nottingham Forest in European competition this term with six of his eleven strikes scored in the tournament.
His brace also means he has got a trio of strikes in his previous two outings and the threat of a challenge for his position in the forward line could be providing motivation.
Napoli striker Lorenzo Lucca was last week brought in temporarily and he was watching this match from the stands.
That may well have been on the striker's mind as he was outstanding against the opposition, producing two superb finishes and generally being a menace to the opposition backline with his speed and runs.
Jesus was not alone in catching the eye, with James McAtee producing his finest display in a Forest jersey since signing from Manchester City last summer, while the Swiss international also performed well.
These encouraging performances will give the club some fresh hope as they switch focus to increasing the gap from the Premier League relegation zone when they welcome their London rivals on Sunday.
"The minimum requirement is a response," added Dyche.
"I have always trusted their work ethic or their loyalty or honesty. It is just go and show your ability.
"McAtee was excellent and Dan was incredibly lively. Igor got another two and these are positive indicators."
Star Performer
#19 Igor Jesus
Match rating: 9.1
Forest Top Players
- Igor Jesus: Rating 9.10
- #24: Rating 8.8
- R. Yates: Average Rating 8.63
- #6: Average Rating 8.01
- #31: Average Rating 7.94
The Visitors Notable Players
- B. Yusuf: Average Rating 4.1
- Júlio Romão: Average Rating 4.1
- #16: Average Rating 4.1
After the opportunity to rate players has closed, the score displayed is the average from all the submissions.