There must’ve been moments when Steve Cooper wondered about the kind of response he’d get from Nottingham Forest’s travelling fans. As unfortunate luck would have it, it was through a humbling defeat to their Eastern Midlands rivals that he found out the answer. It was during the time when Chris Wood scored his second (which was also the third for Forest), cracking up Leicester’s rather pitiable defence, that the Forest fans began their familiar chant again.
“Stevie Cooper, Stevie Cooper, he despises Leicester, he despises Derby, Forest are enormous,” the chant echoed through silent Leicester fans. Forest could’ve extended the score to 4-1 if only home-grown midfielder, Ryan Yates, who also made the first goal, hadn’t missed an easy one from only four yards.
To date, Wood has been outscored in league goals by only Erling Haaland, notching up seven to his name this season. His first, with his back towards the goal, was simply magnificent. Since Nuno Espírito Santo took over as the leader of the Forest, only Haaland has more non-penalty goals than Wood. Forest seemed unstoppable, with their fans wildly singing about Europe and taunting Leicester. Forest ascended to fifth place, even if for a short while. Cooper made it possible for Forest to be back on the grand stage, and now it looks like Nuno is taking them ever upwards. The team has suffered only one loss in their last nine league games.
Cooper, avoiding any discussion about his tenure at Forest, insisted on concentrating on the game and its challenge. His programme notes, other than the conventional welcome message for his successor, team, staff and visiting fans, Billy no reference to Cooper’s time as manager. Regardless of this, Forest fans will always appreciate the remarkable turnaround Cooper ushered in at the City Ground.
Cooper, who facilitated Forest’s landmark return to top-tier football after a 23-year break following a miraculous ascension from the bottom of the Championship to winning the playoff final at Wembley in an unforgettable nine-month period, is considered a hero. The City had a civic reception and the extraordinary scenes at the Old Market Square are memorable moments.
When Forest was led by Cooper during the following season, they faced a gruelling defeat of 4-0 that was to be reminiscent when Yates scored his second league goal after 16 minutes since April 2022, during Cooper’s management. A botched clearance attempt by James Justin gave Yates an opportunity that he capitalised on and smoothly directed the ball right-footed into the lower corner from the box’s edge. Cooper had to helplessly watch from the sidelines while Yates charged into the turf, joined speedily by Anthony Elanga, and engaged in a spectacle of celebration for the Forest fans.
However, Leicester managed to bounce back and equalised after seven minutes courtesy of Jamie Vardy’s fourth goal of the season. Harry Winks crucially initiated the successful play on halfway. Their joy was short-lived as they struggled to hold the momentum. A few minutes later, in an opposing play, Mads Hermansen delivered a commendable save to stop Nicolás Domínguez. A corner shot by Murillo, which brushed Facundo Buonanotte, provided Domínguez with an open shot which was valiantly blocked by Hermansen, who received accolades for his timely intervention. Despite later threats from Elanga and Callum Hudson-Odoi, Hermansen remained vigilant. The closing shot of the half was by Mavididi, which painfully, went wide in extra time.
The opening of the second half witnessed the host’s blunders, which Forest exploited. After a Winks’s pass error, Domínguez took charge of the ball and when Elliot Anderson trained the ball for Wood, only the Forest striker was privy to his intentions. He superseded Caleb Okoli and buried the ball into the lower corner, brushing past Hermansen’s left post.
The recent match saw Vardy giving a stern look to the ref for failing to penalising Milenkovic’s pull and Buonanotte hitting the ball over the bar, as the away team saw opportunity. Nevertheless, Forest’s third goal was purely a result of another faulty play by Leicester. Okoli, banking on Wout Faes for handling an ordinary long pass by Matz Sels, simply ended up hitting the ball skywards. This gave an opportunistic Wood, who was amazed with his fortune, the chance to step in and loop a header over a vulnerable Hermansen. – Guardian