Nottingham Forest 0-0 Arsenal

Arsenal have won the last eight out of ten meetings between the two sides. However, the Gunners haven’t been welcomed to the City Ground in recent visits. In the last five meetings between the sides Trent side, Arsenal have only one once. In these games, Forest have knocked Arsenal out of the FA Cup twice and beaten them to stay in the Premier League for a second season. Would it be another memorable night for the Reds?

Before kick-off, Forest sat four points adrift of safety but their last league game was a monumental win for the Reds as they beat fellow relegation rivals West Ham to grow the gap. Forest’s one change from last league their starting XI was the returning Sangare from AFCON coming in for Hutchinson. At the other end of the table, the Gunners are fighting for their first Premier League title in 22 years. Fellow title contenders Manchester City lost in the Manchester derby, so Arsenal had the chance to open the gap to nine points. Arsenal made three changes from their last league outing where they drew against Liverpool to extend their unbeaten run in the league to six. White, Martinelli and Madueke were all bought in from the start.

Throughout the first half, Arsenal placed Forest under consistent pressure. However, the Reds stayed resilient and compact, not allowing the Gunners to register a shot on target for the whole opening 45 which has only happened in one other match for Arsenal this season. Forest did show Arsenal that they can be dangerous on the counter. Arsenal’s best and only real chance fell on the half an hour mark. Rice’s corner from the left was headed back across goal by Gyokeres at the back post. Sangare cleared that danger but only as far as Madueke on the edge of the area. He took on the shot which deflected off multiple Forest bodies before falling to Martinelli unmarked at the front post. He looked certain to score but the Brazilian didn’t make clean contact with the ball so it bounced off his heel and rolled just wide of the far post.

The other main talking point of the half fell just before the half time whistle. Arsenal cleared from a Forest long throw and it looked to be landing back to Murillo on halfway. However, he fluffed his line and Gyokeres ran on to the loose ball and through on goal. In the fight to make up for his mistake, Murillo sprinted back before putting in a brilliant last ditch tackle to deny the striker.

Arsenal came out in the second half as they did the first. Forest did keep their chances to a minimum until Williams lost the ball deep into his own half on the hour mark. Williams didn’t have many options to get out of the pressure Saka and White had put him under. He tried to turn back towards his own goal but Saka pinched the ball, drove towards the byline and lofted the ball towards the edge of the box where Rice was waiting. He volleyed the ball into the ground and Sels did well to push it away as it bounced back up.

Just minutes later, the Reds’ ‘keeper was called into action again. Rice made an untracked run down the left which was found by Jesus. He drove towards the byline before firing a cross into the danger area. Saka rose up higher than Williams and his header looked to be nestling in but with an outstretched arm, Sels saved it brilliantly with his fingertips.

As the game drew on, Forest continued to stay resolute and see the game out to a goalless draw. The game didn’t end without drama though. The ball hit Aina’s arm in the penalty area but after a VAR check, they decided the defender’s arm was in a natural position. Arsenal now reach 50 points and keep their lead at the top of the table whilst Forest move five points clear of the dreaded drop zone.

I am proud of the performance we put in on Saturday. We stayed compact and determined throughout the entire 90 and the whole team worked so hard. We did well to keep a clean sheet but through the whole game we kept their chances to a minimum but when they did have a good opportunity, Sels was there to make a brilliant save. The save from Saka was unbelievable but he dealt with corners well. Apart from penalties, Arsenal have scored the most set-piece goals in the league and with our usual poor defending of corners, we defended them resolutely. Anderson also was excellent and back to his usual self. This might be down to Sangare being back as they complement each other and Elliot gets more freedom with Sangare as his partner. We were playing Arsenal but we didn’t register a shot on target in the game. The last time that happened was in the 0-0 draw against Arsenal last season too. Let’s build on this positive result and prepare for another European adventure.

Forest: Sels; Williams, Murillo, Milenkovic, Aina; Dominguez (Hutchinson 89’), Anderson, Sangare, Hudson-Odoi; Gibbs-White, Igor Jesus (Ndoye 76’)

Arsenal: Raya; Timber, Gabriel, Saliba, White; Rice, Odegaard (Merino 57’), Zubimendi (Eze 79’); Martinelli (Trossard 46’), Gyokeres (Jesus 57’), Madueke (Saka 57’)