Nottingham Forest boosted their hopes of Premier League survival with a convincing victory over Fulham at the City Ground.
Despite Fulham threatening a comeback in the second period, the home side’s three first-half goals were enough to move them three points clear of the relegation zone.
Callum Hudson-Odoi opened the scoring after nine minutes, cutting inside and slotting home after Morgan Gibbs-White’s sublime threaded pass found the forward on the left-hand side.
Chris Wood continued his impressive goalscoring form 10 minutes later with a superb strike from range – his eighth in nine appearances – before Gibbs-White added a third, placing a low drive into the bottom corner.
It looked like Forest had the points wrapped up by half-time but a breathless second period began with Tosin Adarabioyo’s glancing header pulling one back for the visitors after just four minutes.
Chances were in abundance at both ends as Neco Williams hammered a shot off the bar and a fine Matz Sels save denied Adarabioyo a second, while Kenny Tete clipped the underside of the bar.
The result leaves Fulham 12th, while 17th-placed Forest will travel to Tottenham on Sunday with renewed confidence about their hopes of staying up.
Forest hold on after ferocious start
Following Forest’s four-point deduction for breaches of Premier League financial rules – a decision they will appeal – they urgently needed to do their talking on the pitch to put breathing space between themselves and the bottom three.
A resilient performance against Crystal Palace last time out earned them a point and left them separated from 18th-placed Luton by goal difference.
Now, they can take positives from not only a dominant first-half performance, where they created plenty of chances and shut Fulham out, but also for their resilience in the second half to foil the visiting side’s fightback.
Wood’s brilliant strike meant he has scored in three consecutive Premier League appearances, while Hudson-Odoi has racked up four goals in 22 Forest appearances – having needed 72 outings to yield the same return for Chelsea.
Forest could have scored more as Anthony Elanga’s effort clipped the outside of the post, while Divock Origi – still looking for his first Premier League goal since joined the club – struck wide twice after coming off the bench.
While Nuno Espirito Santo’s side have taken a much-needed step towards safety with their first ever win over Fulham in the top flight, they need to maintain this form to make sure.
