Nottingham Forest's frustrating home form in 2026 continued with a 1-0 defeat to Coventry City, a result sealed by a contentious video assistant referee decision. Jay Dasilva's second-half strike gave the visitors their first Premier League win in 25 years, leaving the City Ground crowd furious after an Igor Jesus equaliser was chalked off late on.
Oliver Glasner's side now sit 11th in the Premier League table with five points from their opening four matches. The manager admitted his team struggled in front of goal, managing just three shots on target from 26 attempts. "We struggled with scoring," Glasner said. "Today was the first time I could feel the heaviness of the past, it was very quiet in the dressing room."
Gibbs-White influence fades
Morgan Gibbs-White, so influential in the previous week's 2-1 win at Aston Villa, found his creative partnership with James McAtee far less effective against a resolute Coventry defence. Early promising link-ups with Liam Delap and McAtee suggested the in-form Englishman was ready to dictate play, but the visitors successfully blunted Forest's main attacking threat. Gibbs-White's work away from home remains his most productive, a trend that will concern Glasner as he looks to improve a home record that has seen only Burnley leave with three points since April.
Coventry's long-ball approach after the break eventually paid dividends in the 55th minute. A diagonal ball from goalkeeper Carl Rushworth found Dasilva, who showed impressive strength and a fine first touch to beat Daniel Muñoz before finishing. The goal ended a troubled start to the season for Frank Lampard's side and revived his standing as a top-flight manager. "I feel great, I feel amazing," Lampard said afterwards. "The reality in football is you have to fight for it, you have to work for it, you have to have organisation."
VAR controversy
Forest threw on Chris Wood and Igor Jesus in search of an equaliser, pushing Delap to the wings. Their best chance came when Jesus chipped over Rushworth, only for Bobby Thomas to dash back and clear off the line. The Brazilian forward did get the ball in the net moments later, but the video assistant referee advised on-pitch official Jarred Gillett that Caleb Yirenkyi had been fouled in the build-up. Gillett agreed with the recommendation, disallowing the goal in a decision that looked harsh given Yirenkyi appeared to fall under minimal contact.
The defeat leaves Forest with a recent form of one win, two draws and two losses from their last five outings. They must now prepare for a trip to Selhurst Park to face 16th-placed Crystal Palace on 11 October, a fixture that will test their ability to bounce back from disappointment. Glasner will be without the sidelined trio of Nicolò Savona, Nikola Milenković and Jair for that match, adding to the selection challenges. Fans can check the full schedule and team news on the club's fixtures and injuries pages.
More detail at The Guardian Football
Manager Oliver Glasner responded to the latest VAR controversy to affect his side. "Of course I have my thoughts but I don't want to speak about it again," Glasner said. Coventry boss Frank Lampard, however, praised the decision to disallow Igor Jesus's late equaliser. "We bemoan VAR, but they got that one right," Lampard stated. The defeat leaves Forest 13th in the Premier League with five points from five games. Their next match is away to Crystal Palace on 11 October.
