Match ends, Chelsea 0, Nottingham Forest 1.
Chelsea 0-1 Nottingham Forest: Anthony Elanga’s first Forest goal seals victory
2 September 2023
Substitute Anthony Elanga scored his first Nottingham Forest goal to secure a hard-fought Premier League victory over Chelsea at Stamford Bridge.
Summer signing Elanga, introduced in first-half added time following an injury to Danilo, struck shortly after the break when he raced on to Taiwo Awoniyi's pass and slotted home.
Nicolas Jackson missed a glorious opportunity to equalise inside the final 10 minutes, firing over from inside the six-yard box after being teed up by Raheem Sterling.
Jackson had earlier been denied by a last-ditch block by Willy Boly, while £40m deadline day signing Cole Palmer was introduced by boss Mauricio Pochettino, as Chelsea chased a response.
But despite dominating possession, territory and chances, the hosts were punished for failing to take their opportunities by a resolute Forest.
A second victory from four games lifted Steve Cooper's visitors to ninth in the table, while Chelsea fell to 11th in the early standings.
Elanga seizes opportunity as Forest earn rare away win
A day after the summer transfer window closed, two of the Premier League's most active clubs went head-to-head at Stamford Bridge.
Chelsea's total spending in three transfer windows since Todd Boehly took charge at Stamford Bridge surpassed £1bn following a record-breaking summer outlay of more than £380m on 10 players.
Forest, meanwhile, signed seven players during a productive deadline day - including the club-record £30m capture of PSV Eindhoven midfielder Ibrahim Sangare.
And while it was the surprise late arrival of England youth international Palmer from rivals Manchester City which had excited the home fans, it was a promising addition for the opposition who ultimately settled the contest.
A beaming Cooper embraced Elanga following the full-time whistle as the travelling Forest fans celebrated only their second win in 21 away games since their Premier League return last season.
Elanga, signed from boyhood club Manchester United for £15m in July, displayed speed and composure as he darted down the middle of the Chelsea defence and rolled the ball past Robert Sanchez after Moises Caicedo conceded possession.
The 21-year-old Sweden international, who had been on the pitch less than 10 minutes before he scored, proved the match-winner for a Forest side for whom captain Joe Worrall - featuring despite suffering a bereavement earlier this week - and midfielder Ryan Yates were standout performers.
Singling out Worrall for praise in his post-match interview, Cooper said: "We've just all shown some respect to him in the dressing room. He had a brilliant ovation from the supporters too. It is an awful tragedy that he and his family have gone through."
The Forest boss added: "To see how he has conducted himself this week, putting himself second to the team and the club - he didn't have to do that but he has.
"Family and health is much more important than football, but I think the football has helped him this week."
Sterling was denied by Ola Aina's block and Ben Chilwell failed to add the finishing touch from Sterling's superb pass in a purposeful start by the hosts, who were aiming to push on after securing a first victory of the season against promoted Luton Town last week.
But despite promising build-up play, the in-form Sterling and Jackson - assisted by the impressive Malo Gusto on Chelsea's right side - were unable to inspire a fightback from the hosts.
Jackson will wonder quite how he did not equalise and set up a tense finale, but Forest, having been left empty handed from two goals up against Manchester United last week, refused to buckle under mounting pressure to clinch a significant win on their travels.
"We are disappointed because we did everything to try and get a different result," said Pochettino.
"But football is about not making mistakes and we made one mistake and paid for that."
Player of the match
McKennaScott McKenna
with an average of 8.24
Chelsea
Squad number7Player nameSterling
Average rating4.05
Squad number6Player nameThiago Silva
Average rating3.99
Squad number1Player nameSánchez
Average rating3.92
Squad number21Player nameChilwell
Average rating3.85
Squad number23Player nameGallagher
Average rating3.79
Squad number15Player nameJackson
Average rating3.78
Squad number26Player nameColwill
Average rating3.78
Squad number8Player nameFernández
Average rating3.75
Squad number2Player nameDisasi
Average rating3.65
Squad number27Player nameGusto
Average rating3.59
Squad number20Player namePalmer
Average rating3.51
Squad number11Player nameMadueke
Average rating3.14
Squad number25Player nameCaicedo
Average rating3.12
Squad number29Player nameMaatsen
Average rating3.06
Squad number10Player nameMudryk
Average rating2.65
Nottingham Forest
Squad number26Player nameMcKenna
Average rating8.24
Squad number21Player nameElanga
Average rating7.76
Squad number9Player nameAwoniyi
Average rating7.65
Squad number22Player nameYates
Average rating7.43
Squad number1Player nameTurner
Average rating7.36
Squad number4Player nameWorrall
Average rating7.35
Squad number10Player nameGibbs-White
Average rating7.31
Squad number3Player nameNuno Tavares
Average rating7.29
Squad number43Player nameAina
Average rating7.22
Squad number30Player nameBoly
Average rating7.19
Squad number8Player nameKouyaté
Average rating7.15
Squad number28Player nameDanilo
Average rating7.15
Squad number5Player nameMangala
Average rating7.07
Squad number29Player nameMontiel
Average rating7.07
Squad number11Player nameWood
Average rating7.02
Squad number24Player nameAurier
Average rating7.02
Line-ups
Chelsea
Formation 3-4-2-1
- 1Sánchez
- 2Disasi
- 6Thiago Silva
- 26Colwill
- 27GustoSubstituted forMudrykat 77'minutes
- 23GallagherBooked at 43minsSubstituted forPalmerat 62'minutes
- 25CaicedoSubstituted forMaatsenat 77'minutes
- 21ChilwellBooked at 31minsSubstituted forMaduekeat 62'minutes
- 7Sterling
- 8Fernández
- 15JacksonBooked at 36mins
Substitutes
- 3Cucurella
- 10Mudryk
- 11Madueke
- 16Ugochukwu
- 20Palmer
- 28Petrovic
- 29Maatsen
- 36de Souza Eugênio
- 47Bergström
Nottm Forest
Formation 3-4-2-1
- 1TurnerBooked at 90mins
- 30Boly
- 4Worrall
- 26McKenna
- 24AurierSubstituted forMontielat 72'minutes
- 5MangalaSubstituted forTavaresat 72'minutesBooked at 86mins
- 22YatesBooked at 61mins
- 43AinaBooked at 41minsSubstituted forKouyatéat 73'minutes
- 28DaniloSubstituted forElangaat 45+3'minutes
- 10Gibbs-White
- 9AwoniyiSubstituted forWoodat 65'minutes
Substitutes
- 3Tavares
- 8Kouyaté
- 11Wood
- 18Felipe
- 19Niakhaté
- 21Elanga
- 29Montiel
- 34Horvath
- 41Aguilera
- Referee:
- Tim Robinson
- Attendance:
- 39,820
Match Stats
Live Text
Post update
Second Half ends, Chelsea 0, Nottingham Forest 1.
This news item was provided by the BBC Sport - Football website - the original link is: https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/66625193?at_medium=RSS&at_campaign=KARANGA