Liam Delap scored twice against his former club and Jair Cunha struck in the sixth minute as Nottingham Forest beat Manchester City 3-1 at the City Ground. Rayan Cherki’s second-half goal was not enough, and City suffered a third straight Premier League defeat.
Nottingham, England: Manchester City won their first seven league games of the season. They have now lost the next three. This one, on a Saturday evening at the City Ground, was the most damaging, a defeat to a side that began the day in the relegation zone and was two goals up before the 20th minute.
City’s errors open the door
Forest scored in the sixth minute, and the goal came from a City mistake. Jair Cunha dispossessed Josko Gvardiol high up the pitch, drove forward and finished, ending a run of home games without a Forest goal at the City Ground.
The second arrived in the 18th minute and followed the same pattern. A mix-up in City’s midfield let Xaver Schlager win the ball, and Delap, who once played for City, raced clear and finished. City had dominated the ball and created chances, but both Forest goals came from errors in their own build-up.
Cherki gives City a way back
City needed a response and found one early in the second half. In the 52nd minute Cherki struck from the edge of the box and beat Matz Sels to make it 2-1. Erling Haaland had chances to equalise, but none went in, and Forest’s defence held while City kept pushing for the leveller.
Enzo Maresca said afterwards that City had not matched the intensity the game demanded, and that the second and third goals came in transition. The City manager also said the club needs to understand what it is not doing well.
Delap finishes the job
The counter-attack that settled it began with Morgan Gibbs-White. In the 73rd minute Gibbs-White led a break and fed Delap, who finished for his second of the night and Forest’s third. It was a fitting ending for a striker who made a small number of Premier League appearances for City before moving on.
What it means
The result lifted Forest out of the relegation zone and left City second, six points behind leaders Arsenal. City had won 3-2 at RB Leipzig in the Champions League in midweek, when Haaland’s 78th-minute winner settled a five-goal thriller, but their league form has turned sharply. Arsenal, who beat Hull City 1-0 on the same day, now hold a clear advantage in the title race heading into the international break.
Result: Nottingham Forest 3, Manchester City 1 (Premier League, City Ground, 7 November 2026; half-time 2-0). Forest: Cunha 6’, Delap 18’, Delap 73’. City: Cherki 52’.
