Time flies, and much has changed in a year. In March 2024, Nottingham Forest was teetering on the brink of relegation in the Premier League due to point deductions, while also being eliminated from both domestic cup competitions, a truly precarious situation.
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04-01, 2025Just 12 months later, Nottingham Forest is now making great strides in the league and has defeated Brighton on penalties to reach the FA Cup semi-finals for the first time in 34 years. Goalkeeper Matz Sels made two crucial penalty saves at the Amex Stadium, keeping alive Forest's hopes of lifting their first FA Cup trophy since 1959.
This is enough to delight the fans, but even more exciting is that the "Tricky Trees" are currently third in the league, with a chance to qualify for next season's Champions League and return to European competition after more than 28 years. Captain Ryan Yates told the BBC: "It's been an incredible season. We haven't achieved anything yet, but to get the fans to Wembley again, we know how special the atmosphere was last time we got promoted."
Penalty shootouts seem to have become the norm for Nottingham Forest in this season's FA Cup. After a comfortable 2-0 win against Luton in the third round, Nuno Espírito Santo's side went on to win penalty shootouts against League One side Exeter City and Premier League relegation rivals Ipswich Town. On the south coast, they faced their third consecutive penalty shootout, with Brighton and Forest lacking clear-cut chances during the match, making it a closely contested affair.
Sels saved Jack Hinshelwood's weak shot, and then confidently palmed away Diego Gomez's powerful shot. After the match, the Belgian goalkeeper said: "In a penalty shootout, you always need a bit of luck, but I'm really happy." Sels, who has kept 12 clean sheets in the league this season, also played a key role in Forest's previous two penalty shootouts, saving a penalty in the fourth-round match against Exeter City and then making the decisive save against Ipswich. Nuno said: "Matz made the saves again. He's been outstanding. It's the third time now, and we always succeed. It's all down to him."
Captain Yates sealed the victory, and Forest also became the first team in FA Cup history to win three penalty shootouts in a single season. Yates said: "I was a bit nervous, to be honest, just relieved to score. Matz saved two penalties, and I knew I had to take the opportunity and send us to Wembley."
This was the first match for both teams after the international break, and the impact of the players' long journeys was evident. Brighton's players traveled a total of 86,208 miles during the international break, while Forest's players traveled a total of 83,054 miles. In this cautious match, the players looked tired, both teams were disorganized in possession, and lacked quality in the attacking third.
Former England striker Gary Lineker said: "Football needs to sort this out. I know people will say the players earn a lot of money, and yes, they do earn a lot of money. But it's not just about the players' health, the public is also affected because you can't see the players performing at their best."
Before the match, questions were raised about Nuno's decision to rest key attackers Callum Hudson-Odoi and Anthony Elanga, especially with top scorer Chris Wood out injured. This seemed to indicate that the Forest manager had already set his sights on Tuesday's Premier League match against Manchester United, which will be a crucial opportunity for Forest to consolidate their top-four position and boost their chances of qualifying for next season's Champions League.
Hudson-Odoi and Elanga came on as substitutes after an hour, and although they failed to make a significant impact during the match, the former did score Forest's second penalty. Former Manchester United striker Wayne Rooney said: "You have to give Nuno some credit. We said before the game that we thought it was a mistake for him to rest some players, but when they progress, you have to praise them."
