Man City too ‘slow’ as Nottingham Forest take control of Premier League top four race

The Football Faithful

·8 de marzo de 2025

Man City too ‘slow’ as Nottingham Forest take control of Premier League top four race

Man City saw their chances of finishing in the top four dented on Saturday as they suffered a narrow defeat to Nottingham Forest in the Premier League.

The Tricky Trees increased their lead over Pep Guardiola’s team to four points thanks to Callum Hudson-Odoi’s late strike at the City Ground.

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While Man City remain fourth in the table, Chelsea lie just one point behind them with a game in hand while Brighton and Newcastle United can go level with wins this weekend.

Man City too ‘slow’ as Forest take control of top four race

Speaking to BBC Match of the Day after the final whistle, Guardiola admitted Man City found it difficult to break down Nuno Espirito Santo’s defensive setup.

“Tight game, we controlled the long balls to [Chris] Wood and second balls in transition,” he said. “But in second half we lost once in transition and Callum Hudson-Odoi finished it really well.

“It is not easy to play against them. That is why they are where they are. We had three or four chances in the first half.

“Second half it was a bit more tight. We concede one chance in the near post, so in the end the balance was for them.”

Man City dominated possession in the second half against Forest but were legarthic in general play and failed to create clear cut chances.

“Yes it was slow,” Guardiola admitted. “We struggled to break the lines and find spaces.”

Guardiola told TNT Sports that Man City now have ten finals to try and qualify for next season’s Uefa Champions League.

“We have 10 games to qualify, we have to win games to qualify and we move on to the next one,” he said.

“We knew the game would be difficult. Every season the Premier League gets better and better. We have ten finals and the next one we start.”

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