Brentford’s seven match unbeaten home run in the Premier League came to an end as Nottingham Forest claimed a 2-0 victory, securing consecutive away league wins against the Bees for the first time in their history.
With results elsewhere increasing the pressure on Forest, the visitors made a positive start and were rewarded early on. Sean Dyche’s side began on the front foot and took the lead within the opening 15 minutes. Igor Jesus, who had scored once in the league this season before kick off, doubled his tally by controlling the ball inside the area and firing a composed finish into the far corner. Forest continued to press and almost added a second soon after, with Ibrahim Sangaré seeing an effort drift narrowly wide.
Brentford were disrupted in the first half by injuries to Mikkel Damsgaard and Kristoffer Ajer, forcing Keith Andrews into a double substitution. Dango Ouattara was introduced and nearly made an immediate impact, breaking through the Forest defence before being denied by Matz Sels. Forest survived a further scare on the stroke of half time when Michael Kayode launched a long throw into the box, but substitute Sepp van den Berg headed narrowly wide.
The hosts struggled to build momentum after the break and failed to resemble a side that had been unbeaten at home in the league since October. Clear chances were limited, and it was not until the 75th minute that Brentford threatened, when Igor Thiago directed an effort over the bar at the far post. Their lack of attacking sharpness was punished late on, as Forest broke quickly on the counter and substitute Taiwo Awoniyi finished calmly under Caoimhin Kelleher to score his first goal for the club in a year.
Forest saw out the closing stages with confidence, withdrawing Callum Hudson Odoi for Morato as they protected their lead. The result restores a five point gap between Forest and the bottom three and extends their unbeaten league run to three matches. For Brentford, successive Premier League defeats signal a slowdown in momentum after a strong run at home.
