Nottingham Forest suffered a 3-0 defeat at the hands of Arsenal, with Ally McCoist expressing his disappointment with Nicolo Savona’s performance on commentary for TNT Sports. Savona, who made his Premier League debut after replacing the injured Murillo, had a tough start, particularly in Arsenal’s second goal. McCoist criticized Savona’s error, saying, “It’s in the air a long time and he cannot let that bounce, he’s got to position himself better than that. He just misreads it, to tell you the truth.”
The Italian defender’s mistake allowed Eberechi Eze to break in behind and square the ball to Viktor Gyokeres, who then scored. Despite this, Savona showed some promising moments, winning four of his five ground duels and being dribbled past only once. However, his work in possession was concerning, losing the ball nine times in his 57 minutes on the pitch ¹.
Savona’s Debut Stats:
- Ground Duels: 4/5 won
- Dribbled Past: Once
- Possession Lost: 9 times in 57 minutes
- Pass Completion: Not specified, but room for improvement
Postecoglou’s Assessment
After the match, Ange Postecoglou, the former Tottenham boss who took charge of Forest for the first time, might not have had the impact he hoped for. The loss wasn’t a surprise, but Postecoglou will be looking to improve his team’s performance, particularly in possession and defensive solidity ².
Upcoming Matches
Nottingham Forest’s next match is against Burnley FC on September 20, 2025, at Turf Moor. The team will look to bounce back from this defeat and show improvement under Postecoglou’s guidance ³.
