Nottingham Forest boss Steve Cooper believes his side are heading in the right direction despite their trip to Crystal Palace ending in a “disappointing” goalless draw.
Cooper’s men had their chances at Selhurst Park, where Morgan Gibbs-White saw a shot come back off a post and a sprightly Murillo was denied more than once by Eagles goalkeeper Sam Johnstone.
In the end, it was a closer result than some had perhaps expected from a Palace squad that, already mired in an injury crisis, saw both Jeffrey Schlupp and Jairo Riedewald forced off either side of half-time.
No way through in South London, but another point on the board.
Thank you for your incredible support at Selhurst Park tonight ❤️ pic.twitter.com/vK6G1hAbDE
— Nottingham Forest (@NFFC) October 7, 2023
Cooper said: “We’re definitely the team that, if anyone deserved to win it was us. That was clear, with the chances in the game, so there’s a little feeling of disappointment in the dressing room for sure, but also knowing that performances and results like this last year were so hard to come by.
“So the fact that we looked like that tonight and the way we have played means that beyond the small disappointment of not winning, we see a team that’s growing and hopefully on an upward trajectory.
“I have to bear that in mind. We want to be winning games, especially when we have chances like we did tonight, how we played in the first half and how we ended the game.
“But I think we’ve also got to respect that we kept a clean sheet, and for us to play like that I think is something that overall will be a real positive.”
Roy Hodgson, who managed his 400th Premier League contest on Saturday, admitted he has rarely, if ever, experienced an injury crisis quite like the one plaguing the Eagles.
Having already been forced to make three changes to his line-up from Palace’s 1-0 victory over Manchester United due to injuries to Eberechi Eze, Joel Ward and Cheick Doucoure, the 76-year-old was forced into two more on Saturday evening.
As Schlupp hobbled off the pitch, Hodgson elected to bring on 21-year-old Jesurun Rak-Sakyi, who before the Forest encounter had played just nine Premier League minutes for Palace.
Rak-Sakyi, who had a disappointing Carabao Cup outing at Old Trafford last week, was a silver lining for Palace and received a warm reception from the home support after he delivered dangerous crosses into the area and tried twice to hand his side an opener.
❤️💙#CPFC | #CRYNFO pic.twitter.com/iVAvtGM4TJ
— Crystal Palace F.C. (@CPFC) October 7, 2023
Ultimately neither side could take advantage of what few chances they had created, but the Palace boss was full of praise for his young substitute, who returned from a loan spell at Charlton at the end of last season.
Hodgson, who compared Rak-Sakyi to the injured Michael Olise, said: “I was delighted for him. There were a lot of clubs interested in taking him again.
“I had to fight with him a little bit to persuade him that if he really wants to be a Premier League player he is in the best place and chances will come, and today he got that chance and I think he took it extremely well.
“He didn’t just do well on the ball, he also did his defensive work. Of course when you’ve got wingers, talented wingers, that is one of the things you ask questions about: is he going to be good on the ball for those few moments he’s got it, but also what is he going to be like when we’re working hard to stop them doing something with it?”
Sporting CP president Varandas: Gyokeres knows price he can leave forSporting CP president Frederico Varandas says he knows the price he wants to sell Viktor Gyokeres for. However, he insists he won't make the Swede's valuation public.Arsenal and Juventus are the latest clubs in talks with Gyokeres and his agents.Varandas said, "I'm not going to say what the price tag is, the player knows what the...
Frustrated Arsenal turn to Eintracht Frankfurt striker Ekitike Arsenal have jumped into the battle for Eintracht Frankfurt striker Hugo Ekitike.The France U21 star is wanted by Europe's biggest clubs, including Chelsea, Manchester United and Liverpool.Fussball Transfers says Arsenal have joined the race for Ekitike.The Gunners are turning to Ekitike after being frustrated in talks for Viktor Gyoke...
Tottenham prepare offer for Genoa defender De WinterTottenham are interested in Genoa defender Koni De Winter.Il Corriere dello Sport says Spurs are preparing a bid for the Holland international.De Winter could arrive as cover - or as a replacement - for senior centre-half Cristian Romero.The North London club has already reached an agreement with Kawasaki Frontal to sign defender Kota Takai. But ...
Jurgen Klopp reveals why he may never return to managementFormer Liverpool and Borussia Dortmund manager Jurgen Klopp has opened up on his future and revealed why he may never return to management.The 58-year-old ended his nine-year spell at Liverpool after the 2023-24 season, becoming Red Bull's Head of Global Soccer months later.In his recent interview with German outlet Welt, he has suggested t...
Jarell Quansah edges closer to Bayer Leverkusen after medical bookedLiverpool defender Jarell Quansah is one step closer to making the switch to German giants Bayer Leverkusen with the club booking his medical.The two clubs have agreed a fee that could rise to 335 million for the 22-year-old although Liverpool are understood to have a 360 million buy-back clause in the deal.According to Fabrizio R...
Liverpool willing to make swap proposal to Palace for GuehiLiverpool are willing to set up a swap deal for Crystal Palace captain Marc Guehi.The Sun says Guehi is the champions' next major target as they prepare to sell fellow centre-half Jarell Quansah to Bayer Leverkusen this week.Palace are demanding 350m to sell Guehi, who has a year to run on his current Palace deal.Liverpool face competition...
Aston Villa find replacement for wantaway MartinezAston Villa have identified a replacement for unsettle goalkeeper Emi Martinez.While nothing has been confirmed, the Argentina international is expected to leave Villa Park this summer.Manchester United and Chelsea are interested in Martinez, with the Daily Mail reporting he favours a move to Old Trafford.In the meantime, Villa have drawn up a cont...
Calvert-Lewin announces Everton departureDominic Calvert-Lewin has announced he's leaving Everton.The England striker comes off contract at the end of June.And Calvert-Lewin took to social media to announce his decision to leave the Toffees.He wrote: "To Everton Football Club and the Evertonians."After nine remarkable years at this club, I've made the incredibly difficult decision, together with m...
Real Betis step in for Forest midfielder DaniloNottingham Forest midfielder Danilo is attracting LaLiga interest.Real Betis are making a move for the Brazilian, who was expected to be on his way to Lyon this month.Lyon were ready to pay 320m for Danilo, but the deal is now off after OL were demoted to Ligue 2 due to financial irregularities.Now Betis are stepping in and aim to set up an initial lo...
Premier League clubs increased their spending in the January window to £370 million -- up on the £100m paid out last year -- though Manchester City are chiefly responsible after splashing out £180m of that on their own. We were nowhere near the 2023 record of £815m, but will the summer see a rise in expensive moves?This year, for the first time, the transfer window has been spl...
- 1 Transfer news & rumours LIVE
- 2 Club World Cup 2025: Benfica v Chelsea predictions, best bets and odds
- 3 Raphinha happy to see Barcelona miss out on FIFA Club World Cup
- 4 Mystery blonde who had night out with Kieran Trippier
- 5 Transfer news & rumours LIVE
- 6 Arsenal interested in signing Cristhian Mosquera
- 7 Salzburg vs Real Madrid Prediction 27 June 2025
- 8 Wayne Rooney gets Erling Haaland ponytail in shock new look
- 9 Arsenal have little chance of Liverpool target
- 10 Man United close in on Bryan Mbeumo