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The only Sunday Premier League match took place at The City Ground, where Nottingham Forest aimed to secure their second home win of the season after suffering defeat against Manchester City in their previous outing. Brentford, managed by Thomas Frank, sought to bounce back from a disappointing home defeat by Everton.
The game began with a poignant tribute to Maddy Cusack, a Forest academy product who tragically passed away the previous week. Once the match started, Steve Cooper’s Forest side attempted to take control early on. They earned an early free kick, which was taken by Callum Hudson-Odoi, but Brentford defended it well.
Brentford struggled to establish themselves in the opening minutes and believed they had conceded a goal in the 8th minute when Taiwo Awoniyi scored from a Forest corner. However, the goal was disallowed for offside.
Despite Forest’s dominance in the first half, Brentford created the best chance just before halftime. A well-worked free kick resulted in Aaron Hickey delivering a low ball into the Forest box, which Yoane Wissa almost turned in at the far post, but he mistimed his run.
The second half began with both teams looking to regain control of the game. The first clear chances of the second period fell to Brentford. Matt Turner failed to clear the ball, and Yoane Wissa’s effort was heading into an open net, but Willy Boly cleared it off the goal line. Vitaly Janelt’s later effort was deflected just wide.
Forest’s woes increased as Moussa Niakhate received a second yellow card and was sent off for a studs-up challenge on Yoane Wissa, having already been booked in the first half.
Brentford capitalized on their numerical advantage as Christian Norgaard headed home from a free-kick, giving them the lead. The VAR confirmed that Norgaard was not offside in the build-up.
Despite being a man down, Forest equalized in the 65th minute when Nicolas Dominguez, a substitute, headed home Harry Toffolo’s delivery.
In the closing minutes, Neal Maupay had a golden opportunity to put Brentford back in front, but his shot was saved by Forest’s goalkeeper, Matt Turner. Bryan Mbeumo also had a chance but couldn’t capitalize.
The game had a remarkable 13 minutes of added time, during which both teams had opportunities to score. However, no further goals were scored, and the match ended in a draw.