Match ends, Nottingham Forest 2, Wolverhampton Wanderers 2.
Matheus Cunha scored twice as Wolves denied Nottingham Forest a valuable victory in their fight for Premier League survival.
Brazilian forward Cunha, making his first start since suffering a hamstring injury in early February, opened the scoring at the City Ground with a magnificent solo strike midway through the first half.
Carrying the ball from inside his own half to the edge of the Forest penalty area, Cunha skipped between Andrew Omobamidele and Ryan Yates before rifling an unstoppable shot past goalkeeper Matz Sels and into the top corner.
Former Wolves playmaker Morgan Gibbs-White drew Forest level just six minutes later, heading home Giovanni Reyna’s corner in first-half stoppage time before celebrating in front of the travelling fans.
Nuno Espirito Santo’s home side swept ahead in the second half when Danilo powered a low shot beyond Jose Sa from close range, but Cunha bundled home a loose ball from a corner to salvage a point for Gary O’Neil’s men.
Wolves remain just outside the top half of the table, while Forest stay perilously close to the relegation zone.
A point gained or two dropped for Forest?
Forest are still waiting on an appeal date for their four-point profit and sustainability punishment, but Premier League safety remains firmly in their hands despite this failure to protect their second-half advantage at the City Ground.
The hosts were the brighter of the two sides in the early stages and Yates had a shot deflected wide from the edge of the penalty area before Callum Hudson-Odoi curled over the crossbar from a similar position.
United States international Reyna, making his first start since joining on loan from Borussia Dortmund, also dragged a shot narrowly wide after collecting Nelson Semedo’s stray pass near the edge of the box.
Nuno will have been frustrated with his team’s defending in the build-up to Cunha’s opener, with Omobamidele and Yates failing to stop the Brazilian entering the penalty area.
But after deservedly drawing level through Gibbs-White, Danilo drilled Forest in front for the first time after Matt Doherty inadvertently diverted the ball into the midfielder’s path while attempting to dispossess Gibbs-White.
Their lead lasted just five minutes, however, with Cunha converting from point-blank range after Sels parried Toti Gomes’ goal-bound header into the forward’s path.
Forest have now dropped 50 Premier League points from winning positions since the start of last season, more than any other team.
Whether this was a point gained or two dropped will only become clear at the end of the campaign.
Four games without victory for Wolves
Wolves have had an excellent campaign under Gary O’Neil, but after going four league games without a win for the first time in 2023-24 their season is in danger of petering out.
They were on the back foot early on but were almost gifted an opener when Yates gave the ball to Joao Gomes inside the Forest box. His shot was cleared off the line by Murillo before Pablo Sarabia lashed the follow-up attempt wide.
Gibbs-White’s equaliser just six minutes after Cunha’s moment of magic means Wolves have now failed to keep a clean sheet in their last six away league matches, last doing so in the goalless draw at Brighton in late January.
Forest’s second goal was just as poor from a Wolves perspective, Doherty playing an unintended one-two with Gibbs-White and diverting the ball into the unmarked Danilo’s path.
The home side looked the likelier winners in the latter stages, after Cunha’s second jolted them, but O’Neil’s team held on for a share of the spoils.
With three consecutive home games coming up in late April, O’Neil and his players will be hopeful of returning to winning ways before the end of the month.
Player of the match
Matheus CunhaMatheus Cunha
Nottingham Forest
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Squad number32Player nameOmobamidele
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Squad number7Player nameN Williams
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Squad number28Player nameDanilo
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Squad number20Player nameReyna
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Squad number40Player nameMurillo
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Squad number11Player nameWood
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Squad number14Player nameHudson-Odoi
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Squad number26Player nameSels
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Squad number43Player nameAina
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Squad number10Player nameGibbs-White
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Squad number16Player nameDomínguez
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Squad number22Player nameYates
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Squad number37Player nameRodrigo Ribeiro
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Squad number27Player nameOrigi
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Squad number3Player nameNuno Tavares
Wolverhampton Wanderers
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Squad number12Player nameMatheus Cunha
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Squad number20Player nameDoyle
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Squad number5Player nameLemina
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Squad number23Player nameKilman
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Squad number4Player nameBueno
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Squad number24Player nameToti Gomes
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Squad number2Player nameDoherty
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Squad number1Player nameJosé Sá
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Squad number22Player nameNélson Semedo
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Squad number11Player nameHwang Hee-chan
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Squad number17Player nameBueno
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Squad number8Player nameJoão Gomes
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Squad number6Player nameTraoré
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Squad number21Player nameSarabia
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Squad number63Player nameFraser
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Squad number62Player nameChirewa
Line-ups
Nottm Forest
Formation 4-2-3-1
- 26Sels
- 7N Williams
- 32Omobamidele
- 40Santiago Costa dos SantosBooked at 90mins
- 43AinaSubstituted forTavaresat 89′minutes
- 22YatesSubstituted forDomínguezat 66′minutes
- 28DaniloSubstituted forDuarte Ribeiroat 89′minutes
- 20ReynaSubstituted forOrigiat 71′minutes
- 10Gibbs-WhiteBooked at 77mins
- 14Hudson-Odoi
- 11Wood
Substitutes
- 1Turner
- 3Tavares
- 6Sangaré
- 15Toffolo
- 16Domínguez
- 19Niakhaté
- 27Origi
- 29Montiel
- 37Duarte Ribeiro
Wolves
Formation 3-4-1-2
- 1Sá
- 4Bueno
- 23Kilman
- 24Gomes
- 22Nélson SemedoSubstituted forChirewaat 88′minutes
- 20Doyle
- 5LeminaBooked at 30mins
- 2DohertySubstituted forHwang Hee-chanat 59′minutes
- 8João GomesBooked at 52minsSubstituted forBuenoat 59′minutes
- 21SarabiaSubstituted forFraserat 88′minutes
- 12Matheus CunhaBooked at 45minsSubstituted forTraoréat 76′minutes
Substitutes
- 6Traoré
- 11Hwang Hee-chan
- 15Dawson
- 17Bueno
- 25Bentley
- 40King
- 45Barnett
- 62Chirewa
- 63Fraser
- Referee:
- Craig Pawson
- Attendance:
- 29,604
Live Text
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Second Half ends, Nottingham Forest 2, Wolverhampton Wanderers 2.
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Attempt missed. Nicolás Domínguez (Nottingham Forest) right footed shot from the centre of the box is too high following a corner.
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Corner, Nottingham Forest. Conceded by Mario Lemina.
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Foul by Nathan Fraser (Wolverhampton Wanderers).
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Andrew Omobamidele (Nottingham Forest) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
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Murillo (Nottingham Forest) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
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Hwang Hee-Chan (Wolverhampton Wanderers) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
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Foul by Murillo (Nottingham Forest).
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Mario Lemina (Wolverhampton Wanderers) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
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Foul by Rodrigo Ribeiro (Nottingham Forest).
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Substitution, Nottingham Forest. Nuno Tavares replaces Ola Aina.
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Substitution, Nottingham Forest. Rodrigo Ribeiro replaces Danilo.
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Substitution, Wolverhampton Wanderers. Nathan Fraser replaces Pablo Sarabia.
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Substitution, Wolverhampton Wanderers. Tawanda Chirewa replaces Nélson Semedo.
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Corner, Nottingham Forest. Conceded by Maximilian Kilman.
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Corner, Nottingham Forest. Conceded by Santiago Bueno.
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Corner, Nottingham Forest. Conceded by Hugo Bueno.
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Attempt blocked. Neco Williams (Nottingham Forest) right footed shot from the centre of the box is blocked.
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Attempt missed. Tommy Doyle (Wolverhampton Wanderers) right footed shot from outside the box is close, but misses to the right. Assisted by Mario Lemina.