Second-bottom Nottingham Forest secured a decisive 3-1 home victory over struggling Leeds with second-half goals from Morgan Gibbs-White and Elliott Anderson, their first league win since the opening game of the season.
The come-from-behind win was Forest manager Sean Dyche’s first league win and ended the club’s nine-game winless run in the Premier League, moving them to the brink of a point.
Leeds are in crisis after three successive away defeats, with Daniel Farke’s side now just one point above the drop zone.
The visitors took the lead in the 13th minute with a great low finish from Lucas Nmeka, which was their only shot of the first half.
Just 2 minutes and 17 seconds after Nmeka’s opener, Ibrahim Sangare scored from close range, instantly leveling the score for Forest’s first goal.
Dyche then masterminded a turnaround by making three second-half substitutions and introducing Omari Hutchinson, whose £37.5m summer signing had a huge impact.
The winger produced a great cross in the 68th minute that Gibbs-White headed home. Forest’s captain made amends for his penalty mistake in Thursday’s goalless Europa League draw against Sturm Graz.
The header was also Gibbs-White’s perfect response to being left out of the England squad after being left out of Thomas Tuchel’s squad for next week’s World Cup qualifiers.
Hutchinson then won a late penalty after being brought down by Leeds substitute Jack Harrison, before Anderson converted the penalty in the 91st minute to seal Forest’s vital victory.
Dyche backs Gibbs-White to regain England squad
Nottingham Forest head coach Sean Dyche said this in the post-match press conference for Gibbs vs. Whyte.
“He did a good job getting into it[England squad]. People forget that. People say, ‘Well, he must be really disappointed’, but he managed to get into it.”
“So that doesn’t mean he can’t participate again.
Use Chrome Browser for a more accessible video player
Morgan Gibbs-White starts to put Forest ahead
“Going back to the basics of his work, I would call that energy contagious: his presence on the pitch and being infectious around the group, and being relaxed and scoring goals.
“There’s an unfair question mark on him and it doesn’t matter if it’s fair or not, we all know what makes the story.
“So this story is there. I told him, ‘Don’t worry about it’s gone, just keep working and enjoy what we’re doing.’
“Three out of five is a big number. He missed a penalty the other day (against Sturm Graz in the Europa League). If he scores that, it’s four out of five and suddenly everyone is talking about him.”
“But he’s a good player. I want him to thrive. I want him to go score goals. I want him to enjoy what he’s doing.”
Falke: We are not panicking.
Leeds manager Daniel Farke said this in the post-match press conference.
“If we evaluate the season so far, we have had 11 games and 11 points. We need an average of points to stay in this league.”
“We were never in the relegation zone because we never fell below the line for a single game, which was good too… It could have been better if we had picked up a few more points.”
Use Chrome Browser for a more accessible video player
Lucas Nmeka puts Leeds ahead
“In my dream version, we are never in danger, we are always a few points ahead and cruise easily.
“Yes, it’s a little cramped now, but nothing. In any case, we are not panicking.
“We can’t really influence what the outside world thinks or wants to think.
“We are very calm. We know what we have to improve.”
Analysis: Substitutions prove to make a difference
Dyche’s first league win as Forest manager had a lot to do with his management.
His triple change in the 59th minute really changed the game in his team’s favor. Hutchinson scored twice in place of an ineffective Nicolas Dominguez, Ryan Yates slotted into midfield with Sangare limited by his yellow card, and Taiwo Awoniyi proved to be a rare addition to the Leeds defence, even more so than Igor Jesus.
Dyche has plenty of quality at his disposal and will be able to utilize it in very important matches to encourage the City Ground faithful to start moving up.
Use Chrome Browser for a more accessible video player
Elliott Anderson converted a penalty in the final minute to seal Forest’s victory.
However, Sunday’s opponent number Falke did not have the same impact even after being substituted. In fact, they worked against him.
Harrison, who came on as a substitute in the 82nd minute, conceded a penalty, clinching their fourth defeat in five league games.
Substitute Dominic Calvert-Lewin also missed a number of chances. In his past 32 appearances in all competitions, he has only scored twice.
Away form and away goals are a big issue for Leeds, who have won just three of their last 25 Premier League away games.
Sunday’s result at the City Ground felt like a shift in momentum for both clubs, with Dyche making a breakthrough in the league while Leeds continued to head in the wrong direction.
Latest news: Falke suffers first come-from-behind defeat in the league against Leeds
Leeds lost the first time they scored the first goal in a league game under Daniel Farke. Leeds were unbeaten in 53 league games under the German manager, with a record of 1 win and 0 losses. Four of Morgan Gibbs-White’s last five Premier League goals have been headed. Only Brentford’s Kevin Shade (5) has scored more headed goals in this year’s competition. Leeds have now lost four of their last five games against teams in the Premier League on a nine-game losing streak. The number of Premier League games without a win has increased – a 1-0 loss to Fulham in April 2002 (nine wins), a 1-0 loss to Brighton in January 2021 (nine wins) and a 1-0 loss to Southampton in October 2021 (nine wins). Their only win in this match was against Daniel Farke’s Norwich in October 2021 (2-1 win). The Leeds United goalkeeper has only saved one of the last 33 penalties he has faced in the Premier League, with Illan Meslier saving from Jesse Lingard against West Ham in March 2021. Leeds had eight shots on target in the first 20 minutes of today’s game, the most in the first 20 minutes of a league match since December. 2021 game against Man City (9th inning), a game we lost 7-0.
