Postecoglou Faces Mounting Pressure After Forest Lose 2-0 to Newcastle
Ange Postecoglou faces mounting pressure as his Nottingham Forest side succumbed to a 2−0 defeat against Newcastle United. The loss at St. James’ Park extends Forest’s winless streak to a demoralizing seven games under the new manager. Newcastle’s goals from Bruno Guimarães and Nick Woltemade exposed the deep defensive weaknesses plaguing the visitors. Consequently, the team now sits perilously close to the bottom of the Premier League table. They have managed just one point from four league matches under Postecoglou.
Significantly, Postecoglou abandoned his trademark “Angeball” attacking style for this match. He instead deployed a defensive back five, aiming to build stubborn resistance. The side successfully held Newcastle scoreless through the first half. Goalkeeper Matz Sels made several fine saves, keeping the deadlock intact. For instance, Sels denied an early snapshot from Joelinton. He also parried a well-struck free-kick from Morgan Gibbs-White. Nevertheless, Forest created little threat going forward. Striker Chris Wood missed a glorious chance early in the game.
The defensive resistance finally broke down in the 58th minute. Guimarães won the ball back from Gibbs-White in midfield. He then received the ball from Dan Burn on the edge of the box. The Brazilian midfielder curled a stunning strike past Sels for the opening goal. VAR reviewed the goal for a potential foul on Gibbs-White. However, the referee confirmed Guimarães cleanly won the ball first.
Newcastle then sealed the win late in the game. Defender Elliot Anderson gave away a penalty in the 80th minute. Anderson committed the foul on Guimarães inside the box. Club-record signing Nick Woltemade converted the spot-kick perfectly. Woltemade drilled the ball into the top corner, claiming his third goal in three games. Newcastle, struggling earlier this season, now build significant momentum. This commanding victory follows their impressive 4−0 Champions League thrashing of Union SG.
Meanwhile, the result leaves Forest with only six goals scored against 14 goals conceded. Their goal difference now stands at −8. Opposing fans chanted “you’re getting sacked in the morning” at the manager. Sky Sports’ Jamie Carragher noted the difficult position for the Australian. Postecoglou has become the first permanent Forest manager not to win any of his first four league games since Andy Beattie in 1960. Postecoglou faces mounting pressure, but he remains defiant. “I prefer to be right in the middle of it, where I can have an effect,” he told Sky Sports. The upcoming international break gives the manager a short window to regroup before hosting Chelsea.
Source: Sky Sports, ESPN
