This was a result that did not really help anyone. Fulham need a run of victories to have any chance of European football next season, while draws alone are unlikely to keep Nottingham Forest in the Premier League.
Forest did at least move out of the relegation zone and up to 17th place, ahead of West Ham United on goal difference, but Vítor Pereira and his team will sleep no better in the coming days. The pressure continues to mount and next Sunday’s match away to Tottenham Hotspur, their last before the international break, is increasingly looking critical for both teams.
Before it, both Forest and Spurs have the second leg of European knockout games, against Midtjylland in the Europa League and Atletico Madrid in the Champions League respectively. Will Pereira and Igor Tudor (if he is still in post) name strong teams in midweek, or will they go all-in on trying to secure their clubs’ Premier League status?
Pereira has made his decision. “I need to rotate the team,” the Forest head coach said after the 0-0 draw.
The survival question is all-encompassing for both clubs, eating into the remnants of hope they had when they started this season, with European dreams in their heads and hope in their hearts.
Pereira tried to emphasise the positives, despite his team scoring only one goal in their past nine hours of league football at home. “My job at this moment is to keep the spirit,” he said.
Forest would have hoped for more than a point and may have felt as if they deserved victory on the basis of a strong second-half performance. But Fulham were good value for the draw, and will rue a missed chance via Josh King’s close-range header from a corner late in the first half, which would have sent hearts racing and blood pressures rising in the City Ground.
“If you are in this position right now in the table, you have to look up,” Marco Silva, the Fulham head coach, said as his team aim to create European dreams of their own. They are three points off seventh, which should ensure qualification for the Conference League at the very least.
Pereira’s side move up to 17th before next Sunday’s match against relegation rivals TottenhamNigel French/PA
“Every game that you have is like a final,” Silva added. “We are some points behind seventh position, but if it’s there for us to fight, why not?”
Forest are winless in their past seven league matches, and while spirited recent performances against Midtjylland, Manchester City and Liverpool seemed to show the value of appointing Pereira, their confidence looks fragile — no wonder the Portuguese coach is emphasising the importance of keeping morale up.
The club did their very best to help rouse the crowd before the game: each seat was garlanded with a red-and-white scarf, which were held aloft before kick-off as Mull of Kintyre was belted out around the ground. You would have expected Forest to launch into their opponents.
But the nerves at the City Ground — on and off the pitch — were inhibitive, manifested in a cagey, slow and cautious start that had the home fans watching on anxiously in the opening minutes, then calling for more bravery as they chanted about their team’s “boring and backwards” play.
Fulham’s Wilson shoots at goal from a free kick in the first halfAndrew Kearns/CameraSport via Getty Images
Silva fielded a strong, attacking XI, with Alex Iwobi featuring in a deep midfield role alongside Sander Berge, facilitating a Harry Wilson, King and Oscar Bobb attacking line, behind Raúl Jiménez. Despite the attacking talent on show, they found it difficult to create good chances in open play.
The nervous and error-strewn first half, thankfully, turned into a brilliant, breathless encounter from the very start of the second period.
Dan Ndoye, a half-time substitute, believed he had won a penalty when he ran into the area and went down under pressure from Calvin Bassey. However, an offside flag curtailed that momentary excitement. But, finally, the home supporters had something to mobilise around; the chants swelled and Forest fed off them, taking more risks.
Murillo strode forward and punched a ball through the centre to Ola Aina, rotating centrally from full back, and he smashed it from the edge of the area on to the woodwork. The defender then made an excellent intervention in his own area, blocking Rodrigo Muniz’s volley with his head, as the game opened up.
The introduction of Taiwo Awoniyi further amplified the noise, which turned into an almighty roar when Neco Williams clipped a pass forward. Ndoye hared on to it, opened himself up and clipped the ball past Bernd Leno and into the net. However, once again, an offside ruling brought an end to those celebrations, with a smidgen of Ndoye’s boot having strayed offside, according to the VAR.
Ndoye’s goal was ruled out after a VAR check showed he was offside by a hair’s breadth
“Modern football — you cannot celebrate goals,” Pereira said. “It is what it is.”
Fulham were increasingly exposed on the break, as Bassey and Joachim Andersen were called into action defending one-on-ones. They largely handled those well until Omari Hutchinson, near halfway, played a through-ball to Awoniyi.
The striker beat Andersen to the ball, but with Kenny Tete closing in he attempted to get a shot away, which went the wrong side of Leno’s post. Now, the crunch comes next weekend.
Nottingham Forest (4-2-3-1): M Sels — O Aina, N Milenkovic, Murillo, N Williams — I Sangaré, E Anderson (J McAtee 88min) — C Hudson-Odoi (O Hutchinson 46), N Domínguez (D Ndoye 46), M Gibbs-White (R Yates 74) — I Jesus (T Awoniyi 63). Booked Anderson, Williams.
Fulham (4-2-3-1): B Leno — K Tete, J Andersen, C Bassey, A Robinson — S Berge (T Cairney 78), A Iwobi — H Wilson (R Sessegnon 90), J King (S Lukic 63), O Bobb (S Chukwueze 62) — R Jiménez (R Muniz 62). Booked Berge, Robinson, Andersen.
Referee S Barrott. Attendance 30,013.