Pereira piloting a Forest escape but Spurs sink further
Nottingham Forest manager Vitor Pereira after the final whistle during the Premier League match at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. Pic: Bradley Collyer/PA Wire.Â
SPURS supporters turned up in their thousands to line the streets before kickoff in this vital relegation battle, but their players failed to show up with the same spirit and duly suffered another humiliating and damaging defeat.
Goals from Igor Jesus, Morgan Gibbs-White and Taiwo Awoniyi gave Nottingham Forest a morale-boosting 3-0 win and took them above Tottenham, who have still not won in the Premier League this year.
And if West Ham had won rather than lost to Aston Villa at the same time, Spurs would now be in the relegation zone. As it is, they are now 17th, just one point ahead of the Hammers and it looks like a straight shoot-out between the two London sides for the Premier League's third relegation place alongside Wolves and Burnley.
What had started with bright optimism from Spurs supporters on a sunny afternoon ended with more dark clouds over the club, and the stadium was emptying rapidly long before the final whistle. Those home supporters who stayed to the bitter end booed, and it is hard to see Igor Tudor continuing as interim manager when league football returns after the international break. Spurs have seven games in which to avoid relegation for the first time since 1977, and Tudor has managed to get just one point from a possible 15 since taking over from Thomas Frank.
He did not make the post-match press conference, after being informed of a serious family issue, so it was up to his assistant Bruno Salter to admit: “The players care and are 100 per cent trying their best. But at the moment, it's not enough.
“It is all about small details,” he added. “For 44 mins we were the better team, but any small mistake goes against us, and we are not able to capitalise on other team's mistakes.”Â
Vitor Pereira, by contrast, has risen to the challenge as Forest's fourth manager of the season, and the Portuguese coach looks like enabling another great escape, as he did with Wolves last season.
This was his first victory since taking over from Sean Dyche last month, adding to draws against Manchester City and Fulham, and he sees in his players the sort of spirit and character that is needed to win a relegation battle – and worryingly for Spurs fans, those are qualities their players appear to lack.
“It is not about Tottenham, West Ham or Leeds, those clubs around us,” he said.
“It is about us, what we want as a team. Should we show our qualities or play with fear?”Â
Tudor's team selection betrayed nervousness, dropping playmaker Xavi Simons, who had scored twice in their 3-2 win over Atletico Madrid on Wednesday.
By the time the Dutch midfielder was introduced, Spurs were 2-0 down and chasing the game, which made it all the stranger that Tudor should take off Richarlison, their top scorer and the man who grabbed a late equaliser at Liverpool last week.
Mathys Tel, one of their most positive players, went off injured as nothing went right for the home side, who had dominated the first-half without scoring.
Tel had an early shot deflected wide and then curled in a corner that was headed against his own bar by Jesus. Richarlison headed wide and Tel hit the bar with a curling shot.
A minute later, Forest took the lead against the run of play. From a hopeful punt into the penalty area, Jesus showed impressive improvisation to flick the ball goalwards and Guglielmo Vicario did well to tip it over the bar. But from the resulting corner, Jesus thumped a powerful header past the Italian keeper, to the delight of Forest's fans.
Igor Tudor tried a change of players at half-time, but Spurs got worse. Neco Williams had a diving header saved by Vicario, before Gibbs-White made it 2-0 in the 62nd minute. Callum Hudson-Odoi cut in from the left wing, pulled back a low cross and Gibbs-White shot powerfully but straight at Vicario, who failed to stop the ball.
Spurs tried to rally in the closing stages, with Mats Sels making two good saves from Dominic Solanke in the space of two minutes, but by then it was all over, after Williams' deep cross from the left was touched in at close range by Awoniyi.
As Forest's fans celebrated the prospect of survival, home supporters were leaving in droves and wondering where their next win is coming from, and who will be in charge for the trip to Sunderland on April 12.
: Vicario 5; Spence 6 (Bergvall 46), Danso 5, Romero 5, Van de Ven 6 (Udogie 46); Porro 5, Sarr 6, Gray 7 (Gallagher 84), Tel 7 (Simons 67); Solanke 6, Richarlison 6 (Kolo Muani 67)Â
Selz 7; Aina 7, Murillo 8, Milenkovic 8, Williams 8; Sangare 6, Anderson 7 (Dominguez 89), Gibbs-White 7 McAtee 89); Hutchinson 6 (Ndoye 80), Jesus 7 (Awoniyi 70), Hudson-Odoi 7 (Yates 70).
Michael Oliver 6/10
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