Postecoglou: Forest not ruthless enough as winless run lengthens

Nottingham Forest's new manager Ange Postecoglou faced another setback Saturday as his side lost at home to Sunderland, leaving them winless in five matches since he was appointed on Sept. 9.

Forest dominated play and created plenty of chances but were again unable to convert, a pattern that has frustrated supporters. In the two matches against newly promoted Burnley and Sunderland, Forest had 39 efforts on goal but found the net just once. After the loss to Sunderland, Postecoglou said: "We are just not ruthless enough turning the dominance we have into wins. From our perspective, that's for me to sort. The players have the right mindset and clear heads. A lot has happened over the last three and a half weeks. I have been stressing we can't dwell on whatever changes we are making and to be fair the players are embracing it. It is up to me to turn dominance into wins."

Nottingham Forest's overall form is a concern. In the Premier League, they have lost five of their past seven home games (W1 D1), as many as their previous 22 home matches in the competition (W11 D6 L5). Forest have also conceded the opening goal in 10 of their past 14 Premier League games, having done so only six times in their prior 31 matches in the competition. Of those 10 games, Forest won none (D3 L7). Their 64.9% share of possession against Sunderland was their highest in the Premier League since their return to the division in 2022-23, though of the 26 instances in that time they’ve had more than 50% possession, they’ve only won four times (D12 L10). The lack of goals is proving the main issue, and Postecoglou added: "We have the foundation to win games of football but we are not and we need to change that."

Postecoglou has argued the team has the foundations to win, but needs to convert chances. "We have the foundation to win games of football but we are not and we need to change that," he said. "Fans have got every right to be disappointed. They want to see their team win. I understand their disappointment, certainly shared by us in the dressing room and by me, and my job is to rectify that." He added that fans' frustration is understandable and that changes on the training ground would continue.

Former Forest midfielder Andy Reid, speaking on Sky Sports after the Sunderland game, said he had seen enough to believe the team would turn a corner. "Forest had plenty of chances," Reid said. "It's a disappointing night for Forest supporters, players and manager but I've seen enough to see that they're going to be OK. Once things click into place, I'm sure they'll kick on." And striker Chris Wood, who scored 20 Premier League goals last season, urged composure but pressed the need to convert chances: "We need to take those chances. Ultimately you pay a price in games that you should be winning comfortably. The reality of it is we don't really have the luxury of time to analyse it. The change has been made, the football has progressed, that is getting us the foundation to win games but we are not and we need to change that."

The challenge at Sunderland was complicated by a controversial decision just before the break. Nicolas Dominguez cleared the ball but was penalised for simulation after appearing to be caught by Trai Hume, touching off a free-kick that Granit Xhaka curled into the box for Omar Alderete to score. Williams, who was near the incident, said: "We should have defended it better but at the same time I've never seen a referee give one of those free-kicks before in all my time of playing football. There was contact, so he got it wrong - and for the goal, I was held back. He had two arms around my waist and that played a key factor in their goal. It is two poor decisions, especially by the referee, and then the people on VAR." Postecoglou added: "It was a whole range of decisions from the officials, both from awarding it and some holding in the box. But I still think we were still too lax in our determination to keep the ball out of the net."

Context from the club's broader history suggests a shift in style under Postecoglou. The Portuguese coach who preceded Postecoglou, Nuno Espirito Santo, started with three Premier League games, averaging 31 attempts on goal, but after Postecoglou's opening trio in the league this season—one of those games away at Arsenal—the team had 44 attempts. The numbers indicate a more attack-minded approach, even as the results lag.

Fans remain hopeful that the improving performance will translate into wins. For now, the club is focused on continuing the work at training and finding the clinical edge that has been missing in front of goal. The season is still early, and while the run of results tests patience, supporters and staff alike will be watching closely to see whether the recent uptick in pressure on opposing defenses yields goals.