Nottingham Forest's European adventure has hit rock bottom after their dismal 2-1 defeat to Braga in Portugal. The Reds' first European campaign in nearly three decades promised to be an exciting one, but what unfolded at the Estadio Municipal de Braga was a far cry from that promise.
The visitors struggled to create chances against a Braga side that were more than happy to soak up Forest's attacks and counter-attack with devastating effect. Dan Ndoye, thrust into the spotlight as the lone striker, failed to make any meaningful impact, leaving his teammates struggling to create opportunities.
That was until James McAtee saw his penalty saved by Lukas Hornicek in the second half, setting up a chance for Morgan Gibbs-White to redeem himself with a spot-kick. However, the Nottingham-born forward's effort lacked conviction, and the ball was pushed away from goal by the Braga goalkeeper with his left hand.
The pressure then fell on Forest captain Ryan Yates, who made an uncharacteristic error in stoppage time, diverting Ricardo Horta's squared ball past Matz Sels to give Braga a second. The Belgium international looked stunned as he watched the ball go into the net, and it was clear that his side had been handed a lifeline.
The goal seemed to galvanize Braga, who flew forward on the counterattack with renewed vigor. As Forest struggled to contain their opponents, the home fans' frustrations boiled over, with several chants of "what's going on?" and "get out" ringing out across the stadium.
The visitor's woes were compounded when Elliot Anderson was sent off in stoppage time for dissent, leaving Sean Dyche's side to face the rest of the game with nine men. It was a painful conclusion to a performance that had promised so much but delivered so little.
Forest's defeat has left them winless in their last eight matches across all competitions, and it is clear that they require a significant lift to get back on track. The loan signing of Napoli forward Lorenzo Lucca may prove to be the solution to their attacking woes, but for now, Dyche's side will have to lick their wounds and regroup for the next challenge.
The visitors struggled to create chances against a Braga side that were more than happy to soak up Forest's attacks and counter-attack with devastating effect. Dan Ndoye, thrust into the spotlight as the lone striker, failed to make any meaningful impact, leaving his teammates struggling to create opportunities.
That was until James McAtee saw his penalty saved by Lukas Hornicek in the second half, setting up a chance for Morgan Gibbs-White to redeem himself with a spot-kick. However, the Nottingham-born forward's effort lacked conviction, and the ball was pushed away from goal by the Braga goalkeeper with his left hand.
The pressure then fell on Forest captain Ryan Yates, who made an uncharacteristic error in stoppage time, diverting Ricardo Horta's squared ball past Matz Sels to give Braga a second. The Belgium international looked stunned as he watched the ball go into the net, and it was clear that his side had been handed a lifeline.
The goal seemed to galvanize Braga, who flew forward on the counterattack with renewed vigor. As Forest struggled to contain their opponents, the home fans' frustrations boiled over, with several chants of "what's going on?" and "get out" ringing out across the stadium.
The visitor's woes were compounded when Elliot Anderson was sent off in stoppage time for dissent, leaving Sean Dyche's side to face the rest of the game with nine men. It was a painful conclusion to a performance that had promised so much but delivered so little.
Forest's defeat has left them winless in their last eight matches across all competitions, and it is clear that they require a significant lift to get back on track. The loan signing of Napoli forward Lorenzo Lucca may prove to be the solution to their attacking woes, but for now, Dyche's side will have to lick their wounds and regroup for the next challenge.
they had such high hopes for this European campaign but it just didn't go as planned 
Dan Ndoye was really counting on himself to make an impact but it just wasn't his day 
James McAtee and Morgan Gibbs-White both missed their penalties which is a huge disappointment 
Ryan Yates made a silly error at the end which sealed their fate 
and now they're winless in 8 matches... I hope Sean Dyche can turn things around for them soon 
maybe that new loan signing will be just what they need to get back on track 
they had so much promise in this european adventure but it all fell apart against braga 
and then morgan gibs-white's effort was just meh idk wut happened to them 
and i really hope lorenzo lucca comes in and saves them lol but seriously, forest fans gotta be shakin' rn 
Their European adventure is turning out to be a nightmare 
. Dan Ndoye looked like a deer in headlights, and James McAtee's penalty save was a major letdown 
. It's clear they need some serious reinforcements up front 
. The loan signing of Lorenzo Lucca might be the answer, but for now, they just need to pick themselves up and try again 
. How about you, are you with Forest or were you rooting against Braga? 
. The fans are right, it's like "what's going on?" with this team. They need a major shake-up or something to get back to form. Maybe that loan signing of Lorenzo Lucca can be the spark they need 
Dan Ndoye is supposed to be their main striker but he failed miserably 
and then James McAtee misses his penalty which is just embarrassing 
and now they have to face the rest of the season with 9 men 
this loan signing of Lorenzo Lucca might be their only hope but its too little too late 