Nottingham Forest came into the game knowing that it could be a big night for Sean Dyche’s side to bounce back after Friday’s disappointing defeat at Leeds United.
The previous night, a late Manchester United equaliser had denied West Ham the win and the chance to go level on points with Forest. Anything less than a win and the relegation worries would have increased.
As it was, Forest did not play badly against Wolverhampton Wanderers and they had 35 shots throughout the match but could not find an opening as it finished 0-0.
In the first half, new striker Lorenzo Lucca had a key chance when Forest had six attacking players and Wolves had just the one defender. The ball was squared to the Italian striker but when he came sliding in his connection meant that the ball went sailing over the bar.
Wolves keeper Jose Sa made a good double save late in the second half to keep out efforts from Igor Jesus and then Morato.
Mateus Mane nearly won it for the visitors late on with a breakaway move but it finished 0-0.
Three hours after fulltime, the news broke that Sean Dyche had been sacked and Forest are looking for a new manager.
Here are four takeaways from the game:
Lorenzo Lucca made a start
Sean Dyche opted for Lucca up front, as opposed to Igor Jesus, from the start.
It was a tough game for the striker, who scored his first Forest goal in Friday’s 3-1 defeat in West Yorkshire.
He had a quiet first half and was replaced midway through the second half by Jesus.
After his goal last week, there may have been an expectation that Lucca would be able to make more of an impact and pose a threat.
He did not see much of the ball but one of the best chances of the game fell his way and he could not take it. If he had been able to get it on target and open the scoring then it could have changed the outcome of the match and gave him confidence going forward.
Ultimately, it was a difficult night in front of goal and finding the back of the net remains a problem for the City Ground side.
It was not for a lack of shots
Forest finished the game having had 35 shots on goal so it was not for a lack of trying. It just was not their day and ended in frustration with the home crowd making their feelings known at full-time.
Wolves did not do much attacking themselves but they were well organised defensively.
There was little doubt that Forest played the better football and if there had been a goal in the game it would have gone the way of Dyche’s side.
It is often said that putting the ball in the back of the net is one of the hardest things to do in football and Forest certainly felt that.
Behind Wolves, they are the second lowest scorers in the Premier League and that has been their downfall at times this season.
Chris Wood has been out injured since October but they have players in the squad who are capable of scoring goals.
35 shots would suggest that it was a dominant performance from the Reds and that they should have scored at least once.
Creating chances is a positive and Dyche would have been pleased with that. However, the longer it went on the frustrations in the stands grew louder and it was looking like it would be a night where Forest would not score no matter how long the game went on.
Wolves will likely feel happy to take a clean sheet away from home and feel as though some of the Forest shots were speculative efforts from distance or overhead kicks.
A Forest clean sheet
It may not feel like too much of a positive as Rob Edwards’ side are rooted to the bottom of the table and it was a game many had labelled as ‘must win’ for Forest but they did keep a clean sheet.
It is now three clean sheets in their last five league games and this one came without Murillo and keeper Matz Sels.
Keeping goals out can provide a solid platform for the team to build from and, other than the Leeds defeat the only other goal they conceded was from the penalty spot against Crystal Palace.
It is clear that Forest need more than just clean sheets and the team are not celebrating a point against Wolves but it is something that could help them in the coming weeks.
Is it time to panic?
Forest remain outside the bottom three but only by three points. There are also games to come against Liverpool and Manchester City so there could be tough times ahead.
There is still twelve games left to play this season but Forest do not go into the final run of games in the best position, they would have hoped to have moved further away from the danger zone.
Draws to Palace and Wolves, as well as the defeat to Leeds, could prove costly come May.
On one hand, it is just one defeat in the last six Premier League games for the Reds but equally it is now only two wins in their last ten games. Therefore, the overall picture is not great and leaves them as a side struggling for a bit of confidence.
Following the game, Sean Dyche lost his job and Forest are now looking for their fourth manager of the season.
It is no doubt a gamble to part ways with the manager but there will be a hope that they can pick up some positive results and prove that they are up for the fight.