In a thrilling encounter at the City Ground, Nottingham Forest dealt a significant blow to Manchester City’s Champions League hopes with a 1-0 victory on Saturday.
Callum Hudson-Odoi’s late winner sealed the win for Forest, leaving City’s top-four aspirations hanging in the balance.
The defeat marks City’s ninth league loss this term, and with six games remaining, their usually routine target of securing a Champions League spot is far from assured.
Pep Guardiola’s men have rarely had to worry about their place in the Premier League’s top four, but this season has been a different story.
City’s limp display against Forest was a far cry from their usual standards, and they will need to significantly improve if they hope to achieve their goal.
Persecondnews reports that Nottingham Forest, on the other hand, are having a fairytale season.
Just a year after battling relegation, the former European champions are closing in on a berth in the Champions League for the first time since 1980-81.
Their win over City marked their third victory in their last eight league games, and they now sit four points clear of the champions.
The match itself was a nervy affair, with both teams struggling to create clear-cut chances in the first half.
City went close through Phil Foden and Bernardo Silva, but it was Forest who eventually broke the deadlock in the 83rd minute.
Morgan Gibbs-White’s inch-perfect pass found Hudson-Odoi, who cut inside and drilled a superb strike past Ederson’s weak attempted save.
The win marked Forest’s third clean sheet against the ‘Big Six’ in the Premier League this season, and their home record against the top teams is impressive.
With 10 games remaining, Forest are on course to secure Champions League football, a remarkable turnaround from last season when they finished 59 points behind Manchester City.
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