Nottingham Forest produced a stunning performance to beat Fenerbahce 3-0 in Istanbul, putting them in a commanding position to reach the Europa League last 16. Vítor Pereira, in his first match in charge after just three training sessions, saw his side dominate from start to finish, leaving the home fans streaming out early.
Murillo opened the scoring with a brilliant solo goal, picking up the ball inside the Fenerbahce half, brushing off N'Golo Kanté and Jayden Oosterwolde, before firing a diagonal left-foot strike into the bottom corner via a deflection off Milan Skriniar. Igor Jesus doubled the lead just before half-time, heading in from a corner routine after Morgan Gibbs-White flicked on Elliot Anderson's delivery. Gibbs-White then capped the scoring on 50 minutes.
Pereira praised his side's mentality, saying: 'This is about confidence. The difference is the way they started the game. This is mental. It is what I asked them, that mentally they must be ready to face a team in this stadium with the passion of their supporters. We needed to send a message to them from the first minute.'
Fenerbahce have never progressed from a major European tie after losing the first leg, going out on all 26 previous occasions. However, Pereira warned against complacency: 'It was a good result but it is half-time and I know very well that Fener will be very tough in the second game. We need to prepare mentally to face this team.'
Forest's owner Evangelos Marinakis has set his sights on winning the competition, and this result suggests that ambition is achievable. The second leg takes place at the City Ground next Thursday.
