Chris Wood has been in a good relationship lately. His goal midway through the second half gave Nottingham Forest their first home win of the season and put them ahead of the 16 goals he has scored in the Premier League since Nuno Espirito Santo took charge at the City Ground. That means only Erling Haaland and Cole Palmer. Just before Christmas last year.
The New Zealand forward will be 33 years old by the time Nuno, who started on the touchline following a three-match suspension, will be celebrating, but he is sure to celebrate. Thanks to Wood's five league goals this season, Forest sit happily in eighth place in the table after this hard-earned victory against a Crystal Palace team entrenched in the relegation zone.
Wood had already seen three clear chances come his way in the first half before hitting the game-winning shot. Former Forest goalkeeper Dean Henderson can claim an inadvertent assist with his weak hand in an attempt to thwart Wood's 20-yard attack.
Brian Roy and Stan Collymore are the only players to reach the 20 goals for Forest in the Premier League that Wood achieved here.
“What's this all about, Premier League?” Forest fans chanted before and during the first half, as the team's energetic start was fueled by the perceived unfairness of recent sanctions.
Head coach Nuno, owner Evangelos Marinakis and captain Morgan Gibbs-White were suspended for temper tantrums on the touchline and in the tunnel, while James Ward-Prowse was suspended for losing his temper in the 1-1 draw against Chelsea. Forest's fitness wasn't as depleted as he had been suspended for a red card. There is a risk of spontaneous combustion.
The club's disciplinary problems may have come during a strong start to the season, but Forest have failed to pick up a win at the City Ground this season. There appears to be some calm needed in Forest's fury, but they still have a chance to level on points with seventh-placed Tottenham as they begin to dismantle a Palace team that has not won a league win. , their strong performance away from home is highlighted. Any explanation.
Although Forest dominated possession in the early stages, there was a gaping hole in front of the defence, and Palace almost profited from it. Ebelichi Eze played in a free role, sometimes ahead of Eddie Nketiah, waltzing into this welcome space and curling just 20 yards wide.
Chris Wood created three great chances for the home side in the first half, but Nketiah broke into the same open area where neither Ryan Yates nor Nicolas Dominguez had a strong defensive presence, leaving the visiting team in the balance. I almost broke it. The £25m former Arsenal striker was disappointed to see his powerful shot go wide of the post.
Yates also headed the ball into Wood at the other end, but only Wood, normally a prolific player, will know how he went into the interval without scoring. A header from a corner kick was cleared on the goal line by Jefferson Lerma, and in the next attack, Wood dived and headed wide from Elliott Anderson's deep cross. Then, in stoppage time in the first half, he was unable to divert Anderson's superb cross past Henderson in the Palace goal.
It was Palace who came closest to scoring a decisive goal early in the second half. First, Mats Sells made a great save from Eze's volley and also blocked Daichi Kamata's follow-up, but the Japanese midfielder was ruled offside.
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Nketiah made some good work on the left and crossed, before Alex Moreno came to the rescue of Forest, who threw his body to block Will Hughes' shot.
Forest's assistant head coach Rui Pedro Silva certainly consulted with Nuno and had plenty of insight. Jota Silva was stripped and ready, but Eze fired two more shots from distance, the first of which Celts brilliantly hit the crossbar and the second deflected behind.
Then came Wood's big moment. You know, he's knocked on enough doors. Trevor Chalobah could only manage a weak clearance with his head from the right corner of the penalty area, but Wood didn't hesitate and fired a low shot from 20 yards that slipped under the timid right arm of Henderson.
