Ola Aina’s Nottingham Forest moved up to third spot in the Premier League table after a narrow win over Tottenham on Thursday.
In-form winger Anthony Elanga struck for a third straight game as Forest clinched fourth successive win in the top flight for the first time since 1995.
It also earned boss Nuno Espirito Santo a first win over Tottenham – who had ex-Forest defender Djed Spence sent off in injury time – since being sacked by them three years ago.
Nuno lasted just four months in North London and, when he was dismissed in November 2021, his stock in England had fallen following a stale end to his four years at Wolves.
Although, as he was not tne first choice for the job in the first place, he was a symptom of the problems at Tottenham at the time, rather than the main issue himself.
With victory, Forest have more points than during last season’s successful survival fight in half the games to underline the rapid progress made under Nuno, who has restored his reputation.
He has the club in a strong position going into January’s transfer window, yet Forest are wary of upsetting the dynamic of a squad which has taken them so far this season, and keeping the team together may be more of a concern.
BBC Sports reports that Elanga’s form means he will undoubtedly attract attention again with Newcastle long-term admirers, and the winger’s current goalscoring run has ended a 10-month drought.
As for Spurs, they continue to drift after a sixth defeat in 10 Premier League games and are 11 points behind Forest and their former manager.
Brief chants of ‘we want Levy out’ echoed from the away end, especially after Elanga’s 28th-minute winner, a cool low finish following a quick break.
Former Forest favourite Brennan Johnson tested Matz Sels three times but despite dominating the ball – having almost 70% possession – Tottenham missed a ruthless edge and questions about their direction on and off the pitch will continue to grow.
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