We ended the UEFA Europa League group stage at the home of our most famous opponent, two-time European Cup winner Nottingham Forest. The stakes were high, with a place in the round of 16 at stake, but we had already secured our place in the knockout stage. Founded in 1865, Nottingham entered the match in 16th place with 11 points, while our team, undefeated alongside Freiburg and Plzen, entered in 7th place with 15 points. Due to the opponent and the stakes, no fewer than 1,668 fans traveled to Nottingham, hoping that this time, in the city of Robin Hood, we would steal points from the wealthy Premier League team. Head coach Robbie Keane, who is hugely popular in England, dreamed up the following Fradi lineup for the match, which was held at the prestigious City Ground: Gróf – Makreckis, Cissé, Ötvös, Szalai, Cadu – Kanikovszki, Júlio Romao – Levi, Zachariassen – Yusuf. 

First half

Our team took to the pitch in black, while Nottingham played in their traditional red and white colors. In the 4th minute, Forest missed their first chance when, after a cross from the left, Igor Jesus spun the ball into the hands of Gróf, who played for Nottingham at the beginning of his career, but for their city rivals, Notts County, currently in the fourth division. However, we responded with a crack of the crossbar: after a corner variation by Kanikovszki and Levi, the latter crossed into the middle, where Zachariassen slipped past his defender and was able to head the ball, but it hit the right post and unfortunately bounced out. In the 11th minute, a free kick from the left side of the English team led to a scramble around our box, and Cadu cleared the ball as it bounced back and forth. In the 15th minute, Dan Ndoye brought down Makrecki and then shot low at our goal from the right side of the box, but Gróf made a quick save. The next attack, however, ended with a home goal. Forest won the ball aggressively against Kanikovszki, then Yates passed it to the center, where there were no Forest players, but Ötvös unfortunately touched the ball (1-0 - own goal). Forest didn't let up, and a minute later, Szalai blocked McAtee's shot just in time, then on the other side, Sels cleared the ball from Yusuf at the last moment. Then another chance, Igor Jesus shot over the bar. The match started at a very good pace, but Nottingham scored again when Igor Jesus' shot found its way between the defenders' legs and bounced off the right post (2-0). In the 23rd minute, Yates shot from distance, Gróf punched it away, but the rebound was weak. We recovered a little, but Makrecki's pass went to Sels instead of his teammate. In the 29th minute, Gróf missed the ball at the corner, and Zachariassen's header almost bounced into our goal. Cissé cleared the next English chance off the goal line... The home side had more possession in the final minutes of the first half, but they were less dangerous in front of goal, knowing they had a comfortable lead. 

Second half

We made one substitution during the break: Joseph came on for Levi. Forest immediately threatened: first, Gróf saved Yatey's shot, then Igor Jesus headed wide from close range after Abbott's cross. In the 54th minute, Forest also hit the post when, after a cross from the right, Domínguez beat Gróf to the ball and slid it to the right post, but Szalai headed the rebound away, and shortly afterwards Ndoye's shot was blocked by his own teammate. The home side's lead increased to three in the 55th minute: after Sangaré's pass, Igor Jesus shook off his marker and fired into the bottom right corner (3-0). Cadu's cross from the left almost led to a goal, with Yusuf heading powerfully onto the crossbar. In the 66th minute, Nottingham made three substitutions: Hudson-Odoi, Gibbs-White, and Aina came on for Nico Williams, Igor Jesus, and Sangaré. We also made two substitutions for the last 20 minutes: Keita and Gruber came on for Yusuf and Kanikovszki. In the 80th minute, Gibbs-White's header missed our goal. Gróf made a great save from McAtee's free kick in the 82nd minute at the bottom right corner. In the 88th minute, Ötvös pulled down a home player inside our penalty area, penalty! McAtee converted (4-0). In the final minutes, Benjámin Gólik also came on.

In the playoff round, where the goal is to reach the last 16, we will face either Scottish side Celtic or Bulgarian side Ludogorec. The draw on Friday will decide which team we will face.