Football

Nottingham Forest vs Sheffield United player ratings – Super sub Wood wins it at the death

August 18, 2023 10:33 pm

Nottingham Forest beat Sheffield United in the first match of the second Premier League round. In this article, we will take a closer look at the player performances in this game.

Nottingham Forest vs Sheffield United player ratings
Photo by Icon sport

Nottingham Forest player ratings

Here is a ratings list of all the Nottingham Forest players:

Matt Turner 6.5/10: Made a game defining one v one save when the game was 1-1, not much he could have done about the goal. Solid overall.

Joe Worrall 6/10: Lucky to get away with a mix-up between him and Mckenna, fought well for his side and did the scrappy

Scott McKenna 6/10: Defended bravely, got lucky with the mistake but gave it all he had, fighting display at the back.

Willy Boly 5.5/10: Conceded a yellow for a cynical foul, but defended ok overall even though he was often caught reacting rather than preventing.

Orel Mangala 5.5/10: Lucky to get away with a reckless challenge, was overrun at times and couldn’t provide the forward thrust, but no lacking on the effort side.

Neco Williams 6/10: Not his natural position, defended like a winger on his weaker side in particular. Provided an outlet with his pace though.

Serge Aurier 8/10: Provided two wonderful crosses for the his two assists and was great going forward. His deliveries decided the game even though his defending wasn’t top-notch.

Danilo 6/10: Put in a shift defensively and covered a lot of ground. Couldn’t play the passes on the half-turn to get his team forward however.

Morgan Gibbs-White 7/10: Slick, silky and slippery. Got away from tight spaces to carry the ball or release Johnson and Awoniyi on the break.

Brennan Johnson 6.5/10: Ran at the Sheffield defense with his pace, caused panic down the right flank on the break.

Taiwo Awoniyi 7.5/10: Engaged the center-backs, made runs in behind and won his duels.  High-class center-forward play with a goal to top it off.

Substitutes

Moussa Niakhate: (N/A) came on in extra time

Cheikhou Koyate: (N/A) came on in extra time

Chris Wood 7/10: Hero of the match, got the winner with a majestic header.

Anthony Elanga 6/10: Injected pace and dynamism to his side.

Ryan Yates 5.5/10: Did what Mangala did but slightly better technically.

Sheffield United player ratings

Here is a ratings list of all the Sheffield United players:

Wes Foderingham 5/10: Didn’t exactly command the area, couldn’t do much about the goals but didn’t inspire confidence either.

John Egan 5/10: Looked ragged by Awoniyi who won his duels with him.

Anel Ahmedhodzic 5.5/10: Lacked the athleticism to cover the ground left by wingbacks, vulnerable in one v one situations.

Jack Robinson 5/10: Unable to combat the speed of Johnson, and was looked like a weak-link.

Gustavo Hamer 7/10: The bright spot of the team, created some threat with wonderful place and got a brilliant goal.

Nottingham Forest vs Sheffield united player ratings
Photo by Icon Sport

Vinicius de Souza 5/10: Suffered a knock, had to be substituted early, was overrun throughout the game overall.

Max Lowe 3.5/10: Was at fault, for the first goal when he couldn’t connect his clearance at all, couldn’t closed down Aurier for the crosses and had a torrid time. Subbed at 46th minute.

Oliver Norwood 5/10: Was out-skilled at the middle of the park, as Gibbs-White in particular eluded him.

Ben Osborn 5/10: Conceded the yellow, suffered in particular after the introduction of Elanaga as he ran down the left.

Benie Traore 5.5/10: Created some dangerous moments when he got forward and ran at the defense, but missed a golden opportunity to take the lead when faced with Turner 1 v 1.

William Osula 5/10: Didn’t threaten much, as he was sometimes left isolated, but played some nice combinations.

Substitutes

Antwoine Hackford 4.5/10: Sheffield lost grip of the match by the time he entered.

Andre Brooks 5/10: Brought stability for a while with a shape change.

Chris Basham 5/10: Put some solidity for a while but wasn’t great at marking at the end.

Yaser Larouci 4.5/10: Slightly improved over Lowe but not much.

Nottingham Forest vs Sheffield United match summary and highlights

The hosts got of the blocks in no time as their red hot striker Taiwo Awoniyi opened the scoring with a thumping header from a Serge Aurier cross in the 3rd minute following a massive mistake from Max Lowe.

City ground roared Forest on as they dominated proceedings and started to hunt down Sheffield, with the pace of the front three causing problems on the break for the Sheffield backline.  Forest racked up 9 shots in comparison to Sheffield’s 1, who barely looked threatening.

Sheffield came roaring back from the break with Gustavo Hamer curling one into the top-corner at 48th minute. Sheffield started pressing, winning every second ball and Forest looked rattled.

Forest tried to fight back and the game became a end to end affair, but gradually the hosts took control, with substitute Elanga’s pace adding to the threat. Then, in the 89th minute, another substitute got on the end of the second amazing cross of the day from Serge Aurier and sent the City ground into  bedlam.

Player of the match: Serge Aurier

Serge Aurier got up and down the pitch tirelessly, covered a huge amount of ground with great engine and delivered to outrageous crosses that Awoniyi and Wood converted. He showed his dedication and quality and was ultimately the point of difference.

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