For Nottingham Forest, and particularly Vítor Pereira and the 1,200 supporters who signed up to this trip, an evening in Istanbul they will not forget in a hurry.
After just three training sessions, Pereira’s first match in charge could scarcely have been more impressive than the statement victory Forest recorded at Fenerbahce to put themselves in command to reach the Europa League last 16. By the end, the yellow and navy stronghold had emptied and the Forest fans present savoured every moment. “Can we play you every week?” they sang, and then: “Where’s your famous atmosphere?”
Evangelos Marinakis’s grand ambition at the outset of this season, before moving on to his fourth manager since August, was to win this competition across the Bosphorus at Besiktas in May and, for all of the chaos and valid criticism, on this evidence it is very much an achievable aim. Forest are in a position of power before Fenerbahce visit for the second leg next Thursday.
For Pereira, who shared beers with Wolves supporters during happier times last season, it was a flask of ginger-infused tea post-match here. The Portuguese tapped his temples as he stressed the overarching factor he felt propelled Forest to victory.
“When I analysed the squad, I accepted the job because I believe in the quality of the players,” he said. “I believe in the club, the president and the supporters. This is about confidence. The difference is the way they started the game. This is mental. It is what I asked them, that mentally they must be ready to face a team in this stadium with the passion of their supporters. We needed to send a message to them from the first minute.”
Murillo is the buccaneering Brazilian centre-back with a penchant for shooting from distance and his fourth Forest goal and second this season opened the scoring in style. Igor Jesus headed in from a corner routine at the end of the first half and Morgan Gibbs-White capped the scoring on 50 minutes.
By that point Forest should have led by a bigger margin. Midway through the second half Pereira had the luxury of being able to withdraw Gibbs-White and Elliot Anderson, presumably with the bigger picture and Liverpool’s visit to the City Ground on Sunday in mind.
Pereira counts Fenerbahce among his 13 previous clubs but while this iteration are hunting a 29th Turkish league title, on the night they laboured and their experienced spine creaked, unable to cope with Forest’s zeal. Fenerbahce have never progressed from a major European tie when they have lost the first leg, going out on all 26 occasions, not that Pereira is getting carried away.
“It was a good result but it is half-time and I know very well that Fener will be very tough in the second game,” the Forest head coach said. “We need to prepare mentally to face this team.”
At first glance Murillo, back after missing Forest’s previous two matches, is an unlikely goalscorer but that would be to diminish the defender’s appetite to contribute at the other end of the pitch. He set the tone in his second Forest game, picking the ball up in the centre circle at Crystal Palace, whizzing past four opponents and hitting a stinging strike at opposition goalkeeper Sam Johnstone from the edge of the box.
His only other goal this season, the opener at Anfield in Forest’s 3-0 win over Liverpool, was a significant occasion and a smart touch and finish, but this was in a different class. Murillo seized the ball just inside the Fenerbahce half and, blinkers on, set off with one thing in his mind. He brushed off N’Golo Kanté and then Jayden Oosterwolde, powering towards the edge of the box where his diagonal left-foot strike flew into the bottom corner of Ederson’s goal, via Milan Skriniar’s left boot. Domenico Tedesco, the Fenerbahce head coach who had lost only three matches since taking charge last September, shook his head in disbelief but more pain ensued.
Igor Jesus doubled Forest’s lead from a well-worked corner approaching the interval. Forest had run through corners and free-kicks during the pre-match warmup: practice makes perfect?
Gibbs-White did brilliantly at the front post to flick Anderson’s delivery towards the back post, where Igor Jesus leapt above Mert Muldur to head in.
Tedesco threw off his jacket after half an hour and was booked for raging at the Swiss referee, Sandro Schärer, for not giving a first-half penalty against Murillo for handball. Talisca’s first-time effort cannoned against his left arm but it would have been extremely harsh.
The heat only heightened after the restart when Gibbs-White put Forest in dreamland. Omari Hutchinson scooped the ball into Igor Jesus, played onside by Nelson Semedo, and the striker spied Gibbs-White in his peripheral vision. Gibbs-White, off balance, nudged the ball through the legs of Ederson.
Gibbs-White celebrated as he usually does, putting his fingers to his ears. Forest had killed the game – and potentially the tie – inside 50 memorable minutes and emphatically muted Fenerbahce. Now the only sound was the sarcastic olés from the travelling support.
