Crystal Palace 1 Nottingham Forest 1–Forest Drop Points Again
After a brilliant run in the FA Cup, Forest fell to Manchester City in a 2-0 loss in the FA Cup semifinal. Forest was searching for their first trophy in 35 years, with their last trophy being the League Cup in 1990. Now Forest has turned their focus back to the league, where they are still in the mix for a place in next year’s Champions League. There has been a dip in their recent form, with three losses in their last four Premier League games, which have seen them drop from the Champions League places.
As for Palace, they booked their place in the FA Cup Final for the third time in their history after an emphatic 3-0 win over Aston Villa. Palace is still searching for their first-ever piece of silverware and will have an opportunity to do so against Manchester City. If Palace were to win the FA Cup, they would compete in next year’s Europa League and have European football for the very first time. Their last outing in the Premier League saw them earn a 2-2 draw away at Arsenal, as Mateta was able to score late to secure a point for the Eagles.
A Stalemate First Half
It was pretty even first half as both teams cancelled each other out. Forest had most of the possession as Palace were the ones who dropped off and allowed them to have the ball. What Palace was doing to Forest is something Forest has done so well all season long as the team that concedes possession and tries to break quickly forward in transition moments.
In the early minutes, both teams created some half chances, but Palace was the team that had the first clear-cut chance. Muñoz connected on a volley from a Tyrick Mitchell cross, whose attempt went right at Sels, who made the save.
The one transition moment Forest had in the first half started from a blocked shot on top of their box; Gibbs-White then gathered the ball and played Dominguez forward, who drove through midfield and played a nice forward pass to Chris Wood, who dished it off to Elanga on top of the box whose attempt was saved by Henderson. This was a typical Forest counterattack.
A Lively Second Half
Palace was the team that started strong in the opening minutes. Combinations and link-up play looked excellent on Palace’s right-hand side between Eze, Wharton, Muñoz, and Sarr. A chance from Palace came from Eze, who played a nice pass to Mateta, who laid it off to the on-rushing Sarr, who took his chance at the top of the box, but his strike ended up going right at Sels, who came out and closed the angle down.
Sels save sparked a transition moment for Forest as he rolled the ball out to Aina, which saw him go on an adventurous run forward and cleverly escape two Palace defenders by splitting them and releasing an early whipped-in cross into the path of Chris Wood, whose attempt was blocked by the recovering Palace defenders.
A good combination play from Palace’s right saw Sarr put in a dangerous cross just outside the six-yard box that found Mitchell, who got a touch on it to beat Sels to the ball, who fouled Mitchell. There was no on-field decision, and VAR had to intervene and tell the referee to go to the monitor, and the referee rewarded Palace with a penalty. Eze was the one who stepped up and smashed it into the left-side netting to put Palace up 1-0.
Forest responded four minutes later off a corner. The ball popped out to Nico Williams, and he had a go just outside the 18-yard box. As the strike traveled through the box, Murillo intentionally stuck out his leg to divert the ball the other way, only to end up in the back of the net.
In the last 20 or so minutes, Palace looked the more likely of the two teams to get the winner. They had chances from Nketiah, who found himself in some great scoring positions. A shot from Eze, which he diverted into the goal, was ruled offside by VAR. Palace also struck the crossbar from an Eze shot outside the 18 as he tried to bend it into the top right-hand corner. Unfortunately for Forest, Murillo had to come out of the game with what appeared to be a hamstring injury. It’s a big blow, as he has been crucial in the backline for Forest.
What’s Next
Forest faces Leicester in the next round of fixtures, as they still control their destiny regarding whether they will have Champions League football next season. As for Palace, they face Tottenham and have an FA Cup Final against Manchester City on Saturday, May 17.
Featured Image via NBC Sports
