Nottingham Forest 3-1 Man City: Liam Delap Scores Twice Against His Old Club as City Lose Third Straight

Nottingham Forest beat Manchester City 3-1 at the City Ground on Saturday, Nov. 7, with former City striker Liam Delap scoring twice. The result handed Enzo Maresca’s side a third straight Premier League defeat and lifted Forest out of the relegation zone.

Jair Cunha gave Forest an early lead, and Delap added goals in the first and second halves. Rayan Cherki scored City’s only goal early in the second half.

How the goals went in

Forest scored in the sixth minute. Cunha tracked City defender Josko Gvardiol, took the ball off him and ran through to score with his left foot, according to Sky Sports.

Twelve minutes later it was 2-0. Sky Sports reported that Xaver Schlager beat former Forest player Elliot Anderson to the ball in midfield and sent Delap through, and ESPN described Delap sprinting from inside his own half between two defenders before firing home.

City had chances before the break. Sky Sports said Enzo Fernandez should have headed in a Marc Guehi cross, and Erling Haaland rounded goalkeeper Matz Sels around the 41st minute, only for Cunha to clear his shot.

Cherki cut the lead in half in the 52nd minute. ESPN said Jérémy Doku ran onto a long ball on the left, and his deflected cross fell to Cherki, who drove it into the top corner.

City pushed for an equalizer, and a Ryan Yates shot looped off Anderson onto the crossbar around the 67th minute, per Sky Sports. Then Forest broke away. Morgan Gibbs-White fed Delap on the counter, and his angled shot went in off the inside of the far post. Sky Sports and the BBC put the goal in the 73rd minute, while ESPN listed it as the 74th. Forest manager Oliver Glasner sprinted down the touchline to celebrate with his players.

What it means for Forest

Forest’s first home win of the season was a long time coming. Sky Sports noted that Forest hadn’t scored at the City Ground this season before Saturday, and ESPN reported they had won only one of their first nine games under Glasner.

The win took Forest out of the bottom three and pushed Manchester United into the relegation zone, ESPN reported.

Delap had scored once in his first eight games after a club-record move from Chelsea, according to ESPN. He started his career at City but played just two Premier League games for them.

Glasner credited captain Yates, who made his first start of the season, with an inspiring pre-match team talk. Asked whether the win could be a turning point, he told reporters, “We have a saying in Austria. One swallow does not make a summer,” according to Sky Sports.

City’s slide continues

City won their first seven league games under Maresca, who replaced Pep Guardiola this summer. They have now lost three in a row. ESPN reported that this is the first time in two years City have lost three straight league games, and that City remain second, six points behind leaders Arsenal. Sky Sports said City are the first top-flight team in 122 years to win their first seven games and then lose the next three.

“Today we didn’t match the intensity, we need to understand the reasons why,” Maresca said, according to Sky Sports. He added that Forest’s second and third goals, both scored on transitions, were “copy and paste.”

Maresca also confirmed that Guehi and Gvardiol, who were both taken off at halftime, asked to come off with knocks, and that the changes were not tactical, Sky Sports reported.

Key moments

• 6 min: Cunha dispossesses Gvardiol and scores (1-0)
• 18 min: Delap doubles the lead (2-0)
• 41 min: Haaland rounds Sels, but Cunha clears off the line
• 52 min: Cherki pulls one back for City (2-1)
• 67 min: Yates’ deflected shot hits the bar
• 73 min: Delap finishes a counterattack (3-1)

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