Nottingham Forest secured their first home Premier League win of the season with a 3-1 victory over Manchester City, as Liam Delap scored twice against his former club and pushed the visitors six points behind leaders Arsenal.
At the City Ground on Saturday 7 November, Forest scored twice inside 18 minutes, were briefly threatened by a second-half City revival and then settled the contest through another powerful Delap finish. It was also the first time Forest had scored at home in the league this season.
How Forest took control
Jair Cunha made the breakthrough after just six minutes. The Brazilian defender pressed Joško Gvardiol, won possession high up the pitch and surged into the penalty area to beat Gianluigi Donnarumma. It was Cunha’s first goal for Forest and ended the club’s wait for a home league goal this campaign.
Delap doubled the lead in the 18th minute, racing clear after Xaver Schlager won the ball in midfield and supplied the striker. The former Manchester City academy forward drove towards goal and finished decisively past Donnarumma, leaving Enzo Maresca’s side facing a two-goal deficit before the match had properly settled.
City created opportunities before the interval. Erling Haaland rounded Matz Sels, only for Cunha to clear his effort off the line, while Enzo Fernández headed over from a Marc Guéhi cross.
Maresca made two changes at half-time, and Rayan Cherki pulled a goal back on 52 minutes with a superb first-time strike. City increased the pressure, and Haaland later sent another effort narrowly off target. But Forest remained dangerous on the counterattack. Captain Ryan Yates struck the crossbar with a deflected effort before the decisive moment arrived.
On 73 minutes, Morgan Gibbs-White released Delap down the left. The striker drove into the box and sent a fierce shot in off the far post to make it 3-1. Forest held on for a result that produced some of the loudest celebrations of their season.
A badly needed win for Nottingham Forest
Forest came into the match without a home league goal or home victory in 2026/27 and had lost four of their previous five matches. Head coach Oliver Glasner had publicly demanded a stronger response after the 2-0 defeat at Brentford. Against City, Forest’s pressing, commitment and sharper finishing turned promising passages of play into three goals.
The victory was Glasner’s first Premier League home win with Forest. By the end of Sunday’s fixtures, the club were 16th with nine points from 10 matches, one point above the relegation places. The result offers breathing space rather than security, but it changes the mood going into the international break.
Glasner told BBC Match of the Day that the players and supporters deserved the win because of their passion, and singled out the team’s energy and collective defending. In his assessment, Forest had played better football in possession on other occasions, but had rarely shown this level of spirit.
“We had moments to suffer but then we could rely on our fans pushing us.”
Delap also pointed to better finishing after chances had gone begging in recent weeks. His two goals were particularly striking given that he came through City’s academy before moving on from the club.
Three defeats in succession leave City chasing Arsenal
Manchester City opened the league season with seven straight wins. They have now lost three consecutive Premier League matches, against Aston Villa, Brighton and Nottingham Forest. The latest defeat was particularly damaging because City were behind after six minutes and conceded two goals before the 20-minute mark.
Arsenal’s 1-0 win over Hull City on Saturday took the reigning champions to 27 points after 10 matches, with City on 21. Sunday’s 2-0 Brighton victory against Brentford then moved Brighton into second place on 22 points, leaving City third, six points behind Arsenal at the end of the weekend. A six-point gap after 10 games is not decisive, but City’s defensive errors and failure to recover from early setbacks are now clear problems.
City controlled much of the possession against Forest, yet could not make their second-half pressure count. The defeat also extended their run without a clean sheet in all competitions, underlining Maresca’s immediate task before the league resumes.
What the managers said
Maresca acknowledged that City did not match Forest’s intensity in the first half. Speaking to the club afterwards, he said the visitors had lost too many duels, conceded twice and left themselves too much to do despite a brighter start to the second period.
“We won seven in a row and now we lost three in a row, so we need balance in that.”
The City head coach said he would use the international break to study what the team could improve. Glasner, by contrast, praised Forest’s fight and supporters’ backing, while stressing that the energy shown against City should become a regular standard rather than a one-off performance.
What happens next?
Both teams now enter the November international break. Manchester City return to Premier League action at home to Fulham on Saturday 21 November at 12.30pm GMT, before hosting Napoli in the Champions League on Tuesday 24 November. Nottingham Forest travel to Bournemouth on Saturday 21 November at 3pm GMT.
Watch the match highlights
Manchester City have released an official two-minute highlights package showing the four goals and key chances. Sky Sports also provides free UK match highlights. The videos are available on the providers’ websites.
Sources
- Nottingham Forest: official match report
- Manchester City: official match report and line-ups
- Manchester City: Enzo Maresca post-match reaction
- Premier League: Saturday’s match analysis
- Premier League standings updated 8 November via Sky Sports
- BBC Match of the Day: Oliver Glasner reaction (republished)
- Manchester City: official highlights
