It had been billed as “El Casico”. But after crossing swords at the court of arbitration for sport following Uefa’s decision to demote them from the Europa League, Crystal Palace could not find a way to beat Nottingham Forest on the pitch.
Public enemy No 1 in this part of south London after his perceived role in their punishment, Forest owner Evangelos Marinakis was conspicuous by his absence at Selhurst Park, although a phalanx of beefy security guards accompanied the visiting players when they arrived. A banner that was unveiled midway through the first half made clear the animosity of the Palace fans towards Marinakis.
Yet having fallen behind to Ismaïla Sarr’s opener, an equaliser from Callum Hudson-Odoi secured a point for Nuno Espírito Santo’s side after a week during which the Forest manager has been at loggerheads with the club’s owner. It would have been some irony if Igor Jesus – who arrived from Botafogo, one of Palace’s former part-owner John Textor’s other teams in his multi-club network that caused all the problems with Uefa – had scored rather than striking the post in injury time when clean through.
But in their first match since Eberechi Eze’s departure to Arsenal was confirmed, Oliver Glasner will have been left concerned that his side ran out of steam in the second half following their exertions in the Conference League playoff in midweek. New signings are imperative before the window closes next week.
Nuno had insisted beforehand that he wants to carry on at Forest despite revealing on Friday that his relationship with Marinakis is “not the same” amid reports of disagreements with new sporting director, Edu Gaspar. He said they are planning to sit down this week to try to iron things out: “We have to communicate and approach the final days of the market.”
The signing of four new players last week for more than £90m does not seem to have been enough to satisfy Nuno’s demands, with all of them making an appearance in the second half as Forest came close to snatching all three points. In contrast, as if to underline Palace’s lack of activity in the transfer market after Eze’s departure, Glasner selected two goalkeepers and academy graduate Kaden Rodney among his replacements but was encouraged by a second‑half cameo from Romain Esse.
Palace’s supporters unveiled a special tifo as the teams emerged with a giant image of the former captain Joel Ward lifting the FA Cup with the message: “Built from glass – etched in silver.”
It did not take long for Forest’s travelling supporters to make themselves heard. “Marinakis, he does what he wants,” was given an early airing, with the rest of the stadium responding with a chant about Uefa, Marinakis and Textor that has become the anthem of their summer.
Temperatures were not quite as high on the pitch as Forest made the more promising start in a fixture that is not usually noted for being a goalfest, with Chris Wood firing wide from close range. Palace slowly found their rhythm and Jean-Philippe Mateta forced Matz Sels into a save with a shot from outside the area. Morgan Gibbs‑White should have done better from Wood’s clever cutback but could only clear the crossbar by a mile.
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Palace took the lead eight minutes before half-time when Forest failed to clear Tyrick Mitchell’s cross and it was quickly recycled to Daniel Muñoz by Adam Wharton. The Colombian’s cross was inch-perfect for Sarr to tuck home. It could have got even better for the hosts had a powerful drive from Will Hughes not whistled just past a post before their captain Marc Guéhi struck a post with a header just before half-time.
Forest are always a dangerous proposition on the break, however, and after a strong start to the second half, Palace were hit by a sucker punch. Dan Ndoye’s crossfield ball caught Mitchell napping and Hudson-Odoi was able to muscle his way into the area and beat Dean Henderson at his near post.
Watching on from the stands, Thomas Tuchel will have been intrigued to see the midfield battle between Wharton and the impressive Elliot Anderson, with honours just about shared between two players who will be strong contenders for his World Cup squad next year. James McAtee – who captained England’s Under-21s to retain their European title in the summer – made his debut as Forest smelled blood, with fellow new boys Arnaud Kalimuendo and Omari Hutchinson also being introduced.
Glasner had been downbeat on Esse’s chances of filling Eze’s boots but the 20-year-old who joined from Millwall in January for an initial £12m showed glimpses of his talent that could bode well for the future. Forest could have snatched it at the death through Jesus, although they still maintained their record of not having lost here since 2003. The next few days will be vital for Nuno’s prospects of staying.
