| Nottingham Forest 1 v 1 Ipswich Town FA Cup Monday, 3rd March 2025 Kick-off 19:30 |  |
Nottingham Forest 1-1 (AET, 5-4 on Pens) Ipswich Town Monday, 3rd Mar 2025 22:28 Jack Taylor missed the decisive penalty as the Blues exited the FA Cup at the fifth round stage 5-4 on penalties to Nottingham Forest at the City Ground following a 1-1 draw. George Hirst gave Town the lead in the 53rd minute, but home skipper Ryan Yates levelled on 68 and neither team was able to find another goal in the remaining minutes and extra-time. The penalty shootout had been note perfect from both teams until Taylor hit a weak effort to Matz Sels’s left and the keeper saved to set up a quarter-final tie at Brighton for Forest. Boss Kieran McKenna made eight changes with keeper Alex Palmer, right-back Axel Tuanzebe and skipper Sam Morsy the only survivors from Wednesday’s 3-2 defeat at Manchester United. Luke Woolfenden and Cameron Burgess, making his 100th appearance under McKenna, were the centre-halves with Conor Townsend at left-back. Morsy was joined in central midfield by Massimo Luongo, making only his fourth start of the season. Ahead of them, Ben Johnson was on the right, Jack Taylor the number 10 and Nathan Broadhead on the left with Hirst the out-and-out striker. On the bench were one-time Forest loanee Aro Muric, Leif Davis, Jens Cajuste, Liam Delap, Jacob Greaves, Dara O’Shea, Jaden Philogene, Jack Clarke, who has scored three goals in the FA Cup so far this season, and young forward Tom Taylor, was included in the senior squad for the first time. Sammie Szmodics was the only surprise absentee from the 20-man squad having returned to action as a late sub at Old Trafford. Forest made six changes from the team which drew 0-0 at home to Arsenal last Wednesday with only Sels, Ola Aina, Murillo, Anthony Elanga and Callum Hudson-Odoi keeping their places. Former Blues loanee Chris Wood was on the bench. Town made a positive start and created the first chance of the game in the third minute, Townsend crossing from the left and Broadhead allowing the ball to flick off his head but without diverting it enough to beat Sels. Applause rang around the ground in the sixth minute in tribute to Forest fan Sam Perkins, who died recently. The home side began to put the Blues under pressure, Ola Aina hitting a shot from the edge of the area, which was blocked. Following the second of two corners, Ibrahim Sangaré stooped to flick a header from Anthony Elanga’s right-sided flag-kick across the face of goal and just wide of the far post. On 13, Woolfenden was forced to hook a ball down the middle out for a corner with Palmer having advanced out of his goal as Elanga chased him down to his left and centre forward Taiwo Awoniyi burst towards him on his blind side, momentarily causing panic. Three minutes later, Luongo was shown the game’s first yellow card for a foul on Callum Hudson-Odoi not far outside the area to the left. Palmer punched away Elanga’s free-kick. In the 19th minute, the Blues almost played themselves into trouble on the edge of their area, Palmer passing out to Luongo on the 18-yard line with Sangaré in close attention, but the Australian international calmly stroked it back to the keeper and the danger was averted. Forest continued to see most of the ball but with Town getting more of a foothold in the game. On 23, Elanga shot well over from just outside the box, then almost immediately the Blues put together a move which ended with Townsend sending over a dangerous cross which was nodded behind by a Forest defender. From the corner, the ball fell to Johnson on the edge of the box but the ex-West Ham man’s shot was blocked. As the half moved into its final 15 minutes, the home side began to see more of the ball again and on 35 a cross from the right deflected out to Danilo five yards outside the box but Woolfenden got in the way of the Brazilian’s powerful strike. Four minutes later, Sangaré shot well over from the right. After an uneventful additional minute in keeping with much of the rest of the half, referee Tony Harrington brought the period to a close. Forest will feel they had shaded the half but aside from Sangaré’s header past the post, hadn’t seriously threatened. The only attempt on target in the entire 45 minutes was Broadhead’s flick in the third minute. Town will feel happy with their overall display having limited the Tricky Trees to so few opportunities, while having spells in control, creating one or two openings themselves. The Blues made two changes at the break with Tuanzebe and Burgess, who had picked up a knee injury in the first half, making way for O’Shea, who went to right-back, and Greaves. Two minutes after the restart, Taylor and Johnson did well on the right with the ex-Hammer sending over a cross which Broadhead wasn’t able to get enough of his head on. Five minutes after the restart, Hudson-Odoi broke down the right at pace and fed Elanga, whose shot was well saved by Palmer, other than Sangeré’s first-half header, the home side’s best chance up to that point. Moments later, Danilo struck another effort which deflected but the Town keeper was again able to save. On 53, the ball dropped to Broadhead just inside the area but the Wales international scuffed his effort. Play continued, however, and Morsy smashed a brilliant 30-yard strike which Sels did well to tip over his bar. And from the resultant corner, the Blues went in front. Johnson, one of Town’s top performers, whipped over a deep ball to the far post and an unmarked Hirst nodded down and under Sels to send the fans behind the goal wild. It was the former Leicester man’s third goal of the season in only his third start this season. Three minutes after the goal, Morato was booked for a two-footed challenge on Taylor with Town players calling for a greater punishment. However, VAR upheld the initial decision. As the game reached the hour mark, Forest made a double change with Morgan Gibbs-White, perhaps the main reason England head coach Thomas Tuchel was at the game, and Elliot Anderson replacing Sangaré and Danilo. The home side began to put the Blues under a bit of pressure, sub Anderson hitting a shot which Morsy charged behind in the 65th minute. The Egyptian international nodded away the corner. On 67, Town swapped Luongo and Broadhead for Cajuste and Clarke. And a minute later, with star striker Wood stripped on the sidelines ready to come on, Forest levelled. An Elanga free-kick was half-cleared but the Sweden international, who played under McKenna at Manchester United, whipped in a second ball and skipper Yates headed past Palmer. As the home crowd celebrated Wood returned to his seat on the bench. The goal turned the volume at the City Ground up a notch but it was Town who were next to threaten, Taylor floating a ball into the box for Hirst, whose header looped just wide. Almost immediately, Awoniyi flicked a cross from the right against his standing leg, then Anderson shot wide. Forest briefly thought they’d taken the lead in the 75th minute when Yates headed into the net again after the Blues had failed to clear a corner but having strayed offside. On 79, Anderson was booked for failing to retreat at a Town free-kick, then on 81 Murillo unleashed a powerful effort from distance which was on its way just under the bar until Palmer got a solid hand on it to divert it behind for a corner. From the flag-kick, after Neco Williams and Wood had replaced Moreno and Awoniyi, Forest went close again, Hudson-Odoi curling a shot from the edge of the area which clipped the top of Palmer’s bar away to his left. Town threatened on 86, O'Shea and Taylor doing well to tee-up Clarke on the left of the box but the former Sunderland man was unable to get a clear effort at goal and the ball bounced wide. As the match moved into six additional minutes with Greaves and Yates having received treatment following a clash of heads, Morsy was booked for arguing with the referee about where the uncontested drop ball should take place, with good reason with play having been rather further away than a yard outside the Town area when it had been stopped for the head injuries As it was, it came to nothing with referee Harrington quickly giving a free-kick for a foul on Johnson. Town brought on Delap for Hirst, who had battled gamely and will be pleased with his third goal of the campaign in only his third start. With Forest the side looking most likely in the latter stages of injury time, referee Harrington brought the 90 to an end, signalling an additional 30. The Blues had started the second half well and got their noses in front but found themselves under a fair bit of pressure and Yates’s equaliser was deserved when it came. Town weathered some more Forest pressure but also created a couple of further openings with Clarke probably feeling he ought to have done better with his opportunity. As had been in the case at the start of both halves, the Blues began extra-time brightly and on the front foot but without creating a chance until the 95th minute. Following a flowing move down the left, Morsy checked inside his man on the edge of the box before hitting an outside of the boot effort wide of Sels’s right post. A minute later, Yates was booked for a foul on Clarke. On 96, Murillo sent Delap flying five yards outside the area but Townsend’s free-kick was straight down Sels’s throat. Forest top scorer Wood nodded his first effort since coming on wide in the 101st minute from a cross from the right, then two minutes later Hudson-Odoi curled a shot just wide as the home side began to turn the screw. Gibbs-White blazed over from distance, the final action of a first period of extra-time in which the Blues had started positively and had gone close with Morsy’s effort before Forest had got back on top. Four minutes after the start of the second half of extra-time, with Forest having dominated the ball up to then, Delap burst way into the home side’s half past Morato and then went to ground close to the edge of the box as he went past Murillo with Morato having got back. Delap and the Town fans appealed but referee Harrington and VAR saw nothing wrong. On 111, Forest switched Elanga for Jota Silva. Two minutes after coming on, the sub, who won the penalty which separated the sides in the league meeting, screwed a shot wide from just outside the area. In the 116th minute, Murillo blasted a goalbound shot which was blocked by Forest captain Yates. Town immediately broke through Delap and Clarke with the latter fouled, however, Townsend’s free-kick was too long. After one additional minute, referee Harrington brought extra-time to an end and the two teams assembled on the touchline ahead of penalties. Forest saw most of the ball in extra-time but with Town defending solidly and preventing them from forcing Palmer into a save, while Morsy’s shot was closest either team came to a goal. Overall, the 120 minutes had been a closely contested affair with Forest having most of the ball but with Town having had spells on top and as many serious chances as the Premier League’s third-placed side. Penalties were taken at the opposite end to the Blues support with ex-Town loanee Wood powerfully slamming the first kick past Palmer to the keeper’s right. Skipper Morsy took Town’s first and after a stuttering run-up found the same corner of the net. Gibbs-White took an age before taking his kick but found the opposite corner to the previous takers with Palmer going the right way. There was no messing about from Delap, who smashed his kick low and hard into the corner of the net to Sels’s right to make it 2-2. Anderson was next and found the same corner to give the home side the lead but Cajuste shot straight down the middle to restore parity. Williams smashed Forest’s fourth spot-kick into the top corner to Palmer’s right, then Johnson equalised again with an almost identical penalty. Hudson-Odoi made it 5-4 to the home side then Taylor hit Town’s final kick low to Sels’s left but not far enough across and the keeper saved to trigger an enormous roar from the home fans. It had been a high quality shootout with Taylor’s the first which had given either keeper much of a chance, but it was unfortunate for the Ireland international, who has played such an important part for the Blues this season, and also missed in the shoutout at AFC Wimbledon in the Carabao Cup earlier in the season. It will be Forest who travel to Brighton for a quarter-final tie, while the Blues continue to wait for their first win at the City Ground since 1999 and a first sixth-round FA Cup tie since 1993. Town, who have only ever won five of 17 penalty shootouts in their history, must now put the disappointment behind them quickly as they get back to Premier League action at Crystal Palace on Saturday afternoon. Forest: Sels, Morato, Murillo, Sangaré (Gibbs-White 60), Aina, Danilo (Anderson 60), Yates (c), Elanga (Jota 111), Moreno (Williams 82), Hudson-Odoi, Awoniyi (Wood 82). Unused: Hennessey, Dominguez, Sosa, Boly. Town: Palmer, Tuanzebe (O’Shea 46), Woolfenden, Burgess (Greaves 46), Townsend, Morsy (c), Luongo (Cajuste 67), Johnson, J Taylor, Broadhead (Clarke 67), Hirst (Delap 92). Unused: Muric, Davis, Philogene, T Taylor. Referee: Tony Harrington (Cleveland). VAR: Jarred Gillett. Att: 29,171.
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