NUFC player ratings vs Forest - One 9, three 8s, several 7s, a 6, one 5 and a sloppy 4
A titanic result in Nottingham for the Magpies as we take all three points going into the international break. That result will be a monumental boost to the players going into the break and will hopefully spur us on in the push for top four.
Nick Pope - 6 - Got caught in no man’s land for the Forest goal, stuck in two minds on what to do. Other than that, didn’t have much to do. Made a good save with his feet to deny Johnson late on at 1-1.
Kieran Trippier - 8 - Outstanding performance from the captain, leading by example as always. Superb first half in the press and quality on the ball, creating a couple of big openings. Demonstrated amazing experience waiting until the last second to give Isak the ball for the penalty, confusing all of the Forest players as to who was taking it. Back to his best after a few sub par performances of late.
Fabian Schar - 7 - Victim of a shocking tackle from Ayew early on that somehow went unpunished. Was pretty decent on the ball also, offering us an outlet out from the back. Really solid showing from the Swiss, who dominated in the second half and soldiered on well.
Sven Botman - 4 - His worst game in black and white. Gifted Forest a goal in the first half with an awful back pass, perhaps letting the crowd and atmosphere get to him. He will learn though and come back stronger, as he did eventually settle into the game after his error. Responded to his call up to the Dutch squad with a really poor performance and one he will be disappointed with.
Dan Burn - 7 - Decent all evening but struggled to get forward as much as he’d like to. Brennan Johnson gave him some issues in the first half, but the Blyth man grew into the game and displayed some real fight and experience to get us over the line. Booked for dissent but was excellent after that.
Sean Longstaff - 7.5 - An energetic, fully committed performance from the Geordie boy. Full of beans all night and showed some good quality at times. Regardless of his quality he always gives 100%, battled right until the end. Hit the bar with a deflected shot in the first half, very unlucky not to score.
Bruno Guimaraes - 7 - Optimised the spirit of the football club, giving everything to get us over the line and constantly demanding the ball from his team mates. Wasn't as influential as he has been this season and was perhaps outshone, at times by Willock and Longstaff, but still showed quality and fight, doing well to shrug off a few late tackles from Shelvey. Had a shot blocked in the second half from close range and forced Navas into a decent stop. A solid performance from the Brazilian.
Joe Willock - 8 - Followed up his brilliant performance last week with another class showing. Superb assist for Isak with a beautiful chip into the box and delivered the cross that ended up winning us a late penalty. Drove forward with intent all evening and got us on the front foot. Another extremely mature performance. Two things for definite, Howe is shaping Willock into an all round midfielder and the England call up can’t be a million miles away.
Allan Saint-Maximin - 5 - One of those nights where he just didn't look at it, although Howe did confirm after the game that he was taken off at the break due to 'tightness' in his hamstring. This may explain why he didn't look to beat his man and was slow in getting back to help out Burn.
Jacob Murphy - 7.5 - Another positive performance from the speedy winger. Followed up his promising showing against Wolves with another good performance. Always an outlet on the right hand side, not afraid to beat his man or cut inside with a dribble. Choice of pass was excellent and full of energy going forward, creating more chances than any other Mag on the night. Did fire one good chance wide late on, but made up for that with what he created.
Alexander Isak - 9 - An absolute superstar. Took his first goal beautifully with a clever volley from Willock’s brilliant cross. So lively all evening, constant movement in behind and superb dribbling, also showing his value at the other end by heading clear a few Forest corners. Despatched his penalty with ultimate composure and class. What a player.
Substitutes:
Elliot Anderson - 8 - Unbelievable cameo performance in the second half and will be pushing for a start now. Robbed of a goal with an offside decision that I can’t understand. Gave Forest all sorts of problems, showing strength and tight dribbling as he cut in from the left and caused havoc in the box. A huge night for him.
Matt Ritchie - N/A - Came on for the final five minutes, replacing Murphy in attack.
