Nine-in-a-row for leaders Norwich with comfortable win at Nottingham Forest

Posted Thursday, March 18, 2021 by PA

Norwich set a new club record of nine consecutive wins following a 2-0 triumph at Nottingham Forest.

The Canaries moved 10 points clear at the top of the Championship table following early first-half goals from the prolific Teemu Pukki and ex-Forest midfielder Kieran Dowell.

Victory saw Daniel Farke’s side eclipse the efforts of the club’s 2018-19 and 2009-10 teams, who both enjoyed eight-match winning streaks in all competitions.

Both of those squads finished their campaigns on top of the Championship and League One respectively and the class of 2020-21 will take some catching as they close in on a swift return to the Premier League.

Farke’s men stamped their authority on proceedings at the City Ground from the start, with Dowell drilling a 20-yard effort just wide and Max Aarons calling home goalkeeper Jordan Smith into action from a similar distance.

And it came as no surprise when Pukki struck his 11th goal of Norwich’s winning streak to give his side the lead after nine minutes.

He sidestepped a Tyler Blackett challenge 15 yards from goal after receiving Lukas Rupp’s pass and fired a low shot into Smith’s bottom-right corner for his 22nd goal of the campaign.

The visitors doubled their lead four minutes later when Dowell exchanged passes with Rupp before rifling a 20-yard attempt inside Smith’s left-hand upright.

Pukki also had a chance cleared off the line by Lewis Grabban, while Forest’s only first-half threat came from Luke Freeman corners, but neither Ryan Yates or Tobias Figueiredo could find the target from free headers.

Undeterred, Norwich saw Pukki race on to a Todd Cantwell pass before finding the sidenetting and the pair then combined to send Kenny McLean through on the home goal, but an alert Smith did well to smother his shot.

Forest twice went close to reducing the deficit early in the second half.

First, nimble footwork by Freeman created space for a 15-yard shot that drifted inches wide, before Grabban was sent clear on goal by James Garner but delayed his shot long enough for Tim Krul to smother.

At the other end, Pukki ghosted past Figueiredo through the left channel and forced Smith into near-post action.

The Finnish forward also pulled a ball back from the byline that Cantwell scuffed tamely wide, while left-back Dimitris Giannoulis went closer with a low 20-yard drive.

Moments later, Scott McKenna’s wayward header for the hosts failed to trouble Krul as toothless Forest finished the game having only netted twice in their last six home games.