May 01, (THEWILL) – Nottingham Forest suffered their third defeat in four matches on Thursday, falling 2-0 to Brentford at the City Ground. The result dealt a significant blow to Forest’s ambitions of returning to UEFA Champions League football for the first time since 1980.
Goals from Kevin Schade and Yoane Wissa proved decisive for Brentford, who executed their game plan effectively. Schade capitalised on a defensive error just before half-time, whilst Wissa doubled the advantage with 20 minutes remaining, cleverly chipping goalkeeper Matz Sels after outpacing Nikola Milenkovic.
The defeat leaves Forest outside the English Premier League top five with just four fixtures remaining against Crystal Palace, Leicester, West Ham and Chelsea. Despite accumulating 60 points this season, they now trail third-placed Newcastle by two points in an intensely competitive race where five points separate five clubs vying for UCL qualification.
Brentford continue their own push for European football, moving within one point of 10th-placed Bournemouth. The victory puts Thomas Frank’s side on track for potentially their highest EPL finish, having previously reached ninth position in the 2022/2023 campaign before dropping to 16th last season.
For Forest manager Nuno Espirito Santo, this represents another disappointment following their FA Cup semi-final elimination by Manchester City. The two-time European champions have spent much of the 2024/2025 season in the upper reaches of the table but are experiencing a concerning dip in form at the most critical stage of their campaign.
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
