After Dejan Kulusevski scored Tottenham’s second goal, effectively sealing the victory for Nottingham Forest, Steve Cooper turned around, ran his fingers down his face, and headed back to the team’s bench. The number of times Cooper will be able to continue coaching at this stadium depends on how the Forest owner, Evangelos Marinakis, perceives this loss, which marks their fifth defeat in six matches. If they do not perform well during their match against Bournemouth on December 23rd, Forest may find themselves in a position to be relegated.
Forest have won one of their past 13 matches and Cooper is on increasingly rocky terrain. Spurs finished with 10 men, Yves Bissouma seeing red for a crude takedown of Ryan Yates with 20 minutes to play, but goals from Richarlison and Kulusevski ensured successive victories for Ange Postecoglou’s side. The last time Richarlison managed back-to-back league goals, his manager was Frank Lampard and Donny van de Beek and Dele Alli were among his Everton clubmates.
Richarlison is only one more goal away from doubling last season’s tally in all competitions, after his fifth of the campaign here. “Richarlison is a goalmouth monster,” Postecoglou said. “I’m really pleased with him in training and I was confident that he could go out there and do a job for us. He is in a better space physically and mentally. It was hard for him [last season] but he soldiered on. He is definitely feeling a lot better about himself.”
One minute before the start of the game, Cooper walked around the edge of his designated area, acknowledging the constant chants of his name from the home fans. Just 41 seconds into the match, they chanted again. For Miltiadis Marinakis, the sole Marinakis in attendance that night, it served as a reminder of the high regard the Forest manager held among supporters, although the hierarchy already knew this.
Although the board remains skeptical about Cooper, the fans have little doubt. They have earned 14 points in 17 matches, which is the same as they had at this point last season. However, there is increased pressure for success after a big investment in the summer. Postecoglou is familiar with this pressure, having experienced it with Tottenham’s fantastic start to the season.
Brennan Johnson, who joined Forest at the age of eight but then transferred to Spurs in September for a club-record fee of £47.5m, came close to scoring against his former team. However, he was forced to leave the game due to a head injury just before the half-hour mark. In an awkward move, Kulusevski made his way forward and found Johnson, who quickly tapped the ball towards the far corner of the Forest goal. Matt Turner managed to push the ball around his right post and out of danger.
Forest did not play flashy football and stuck with their previous 3-5-2 formation. Despite this, their practical strategy almost led to success. During a throw into the box from centre-back Moussa Niakhaté, Willy Boly kept the ball in play. However, Cheikhou Kouyaté committed a crucial mistake by handling the ball when he only had Guglielmo Vicario to beat.
Within a short time, Johnson hobbled off the field and was met with enthusiastic cheers from supporters of both teams. Cooper and Postecoglou showed their appreciation for the 22-year-old by embracing him as he made his way towards the tunnel. Moments later, Yates, also a native of Nottingham, made a strong block to stop Ben Davies from launching the ball forward and encouraged the fans to make more noise.
However, it felt like it was bound to happen eventually that Spurs would score. Kulusevski kicked a clever ball with speed towards Forest’s six-yard box and Boly was unable to recognize the threat, resulting in Richarlison heading in and beating Turner to the ball.
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Forest had an opportunity to make a comeback in the second half of the game, but unfortunately for Cooper, it was given to the player he least wanted. Elanga passed the ball to Boly, who was unmarked inside the box, but the defender missed his shot over the bar. This was a relief for the Spurs defense, who had been drawn towards the ball.
On the 58th minute, Elanga scored a goal from Neco Williams’s cross, but Tottenham’s defensive strategy helped them avoid a goal, as confirmed by a VAR review when it showed that Elanga was one of four Forest players caught offside.
Cooper stated that it is time to stop dwelling on what could have been and focus on staying united. He holds his job in high regard and wishes that the outcomes were different. He acknowledges that there may be discussions about his performance, but he would prefer to be discussing positive results and victories for the team.
After twenty minutes of play in the second half, the unexpected attack occurred. Turner made a careless kick, sending the ball straight to Kulusevski on the right side. Taking advantage of the Forest goalkeeper’s mistake, the Swede drove towards Niakhaté, shifting onto his right foot and powerfully shooting towards the goal. Turner was unable to stop the strike and will likely not want to see a replay of it.
Source: theguardian.com
