London: Nottingham Forest have returned to third place in the Premier League after a hard-earned 2-1 victory at Tottenham Hotspur.
First-half goals from Elliot Anderson and Chris Wood were enough to get Nuno Espirito Santo’s side back to winning ways, following two consecutive defeats, despite the hosts dominating for large periods at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
Forest raced into a 2-0 lead within the first 20 minutes in North London. Anderson’s deflected strike opened the scoring, while Wood’s 19th league goal of the season doubled Forest’s lead in the 16th minute.
Spurs made their second-half dominance count, with Richarlison halving the deficit three minutes from time, but it proved too late, Premier League reports.
The home side struggled to create any further clear chances with Nuno’s side looking to catch Spurs on the counter in the final moments before the final whistle sounded and Forest had their points.
Forest leapfrog Newcastle United, Manchester City and Chelsea to boost their own UEFA Champions League qualification hopes, while Ange Postecoglou’s side remain 16th.
“It’s disappointing. Another disappointing loss. A loss that for large parts was self-inflicted. We conceded two poor goals and gave ourselves a mountain to climb. I still think we didn’t deserve to lose on the balance of play,” Spurs manager Ange Postecoglou said.
Forest return to third in the Premier League ahead of next weekend’s Emirates FA Cup semifinal against Manchester City.
“I think it was a big improvement. I think we reacted well from the previous game. There was a clear intention to bounce back and the boys did well.
“We have a clear way to play and find ourselves in our identity. We controlled the game really well in the first half. We had goals, but also Tottenham created chances in the second half and we had to hold on to what we had,” Forest coach Nuno Espirito Santo said.
(IANS)
