How the genius tactical play from Nottingham Forest is placing them firmly at the top of the Premier League

The Irish Sun

22-04-2025

THE Champions League anthem will surely ring around the City Ground next season and deservedly so.
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Nuno Espirito Santo has transformed Forest from relegation candidates to Champions League hopefuls
Credit: Alamy
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Centre-backs Nikola Milenkovic and Murillo have been key to their success
Credit: Reuters
But they have defied belief to consistently be closest challengers to Liverpool and Arsenal.
Forest are a unique side tactically with some of the league's most underrated players. Here is how they have shocked everyone this year.
Stats just not right
When crunching the numbers, Forest's clinical and resilient side are on show.
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Attacking-wise, they rank fourth for shot conversation and 14th for total shots, all while having the least amount of average possession in the division.
Only
So how do they keep so many teams out? Essentially, it is park the bus brilliance.
In Nikola Milenkovic and Murillo they have two great box defenders and full-backs, usually Neco Williams and Ola Aina, rarely go forward.
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Nuno cuts his team down the middle with a setup that sees six players defend and four attack.
When out of possession, they sit on the edge of their own box in a 4-4-2 shape and it is extremely narrow and difficult to play through.
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They are well-drilled in blocking passing lanes, setting traps to win it back and funnelling the ball wide.
Forest then back themselves should a cross come in, having aerially dominant centre-back and a keeper in-form like Matz Sels are a must.
Teams have so much of the ball but have nowhere to go, it is the magic of the formation.
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Forest are so compact and there is no way through for opponents
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The gaps between their lines are tight and set traps and block passing lanes
Dreaming dreams of our Murillo
The Brazilian 22-year-old is not far off
He is so good at giving striker's no space to work with and he is the leader of the back four.
Murillo does this amazing thing where if the ball's on one side of the pitch, he brings the two nearest Forest players closer to him as he marks the rival centre-forward.
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The team pulls in towards Murillo when a cross comes in
When opponents are about to cross, Murillo drops two steps and the rest of the team follow suit.
We see players put their hands in the air as a signal before a free-kick and the defensive line then drops. Essentially, Murillo does it in open play. It's amazing.
He also bullies the striker before the ball comes in with clever nudges and holding.
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Murillo and Milenkovic are physical and aerially dominant
Don't Look Back, Elanga
Against Spurs,
Elliot Anderson and Morgan Gibbs-White tucked in to frustrate the inverted full-backs formation that so many teams use, again, giving opponents no space to work with.
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Wood is the focal point and Elanga is free, ready to float around the striker to cause havoc where he wants.
The ex-
In transition, passes are always aimed towards Elanga to start the counter-attack.
And the team pulls apart opponent's defensive structures to help with their quick breaks.
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Wood drops deep to hold up the ball and runners go beyond him, defensive lines then becomes jagged so they can't play offside as Elanga truly doesn't look back and sprints forward.
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Elanga drifts out wide and starts counter-attacks
Where there's Forest, there's Wood
You would be forgiven for thinking
But the veteran striker continues to be the league's most clinical forward, his 19 goals this season is eight more than his expected goals have predicted (only three of his strikes have been penalties too).
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Going back to him dropping deep, when Forest win it back with a clearance, he positions himself on the opponent's midfield with the wide players either side of him.
Centre-backs do not want to leave their zone and be dragged miles out, those jagged backline worries, and Wood is able to win headers and flick it on for his speedster team-mates.
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Wood likes to drop deep and win flick-ons after a clearance to start counter-attacks
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Forest are also happy to go long from goal-kicks and put it on Wood's head. They have players around him to pick up the loose balls.
A throwback centre-forward and it is working wonders.
Give 'em Ell
Elliot Anderson is one of the most underappreciated players in the Premier League.
His awareness of where to help defensively and his positional play is brilliant and key to Nuno's system.
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He can play on the left of a midfield three, the No.6 role, part of a double pivot and further up the field in attack.
All action Anderson knows when the likes of Elanga,
It is exactly what Nuno demands in a setup that prioritises never being outnumbered defensively.
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