Forest on fire, but Nuno urges players to 'stay humble'

WOLVERHAMPTON, England — Manager Nuno Espirito Santo is not getting carried away by Nottingham Forest's eye-catching form, which has seen it enter the Premier League title race following a sixth victory in a row, away at Wolverhampton Wanderers, on Monday.

Forest's 3-0 success was not without alarm, but its joint-biggest win of the season, which included a ninth clean sheet, leaves it six points behind league leader Liverpool, which it will host next week.

The visiting side had goalkeeper Matz Sels to thank in the first half, and the clinical nature of Forest's performance saw it score with each of its three shots on target.

England international Morgan Gibbs-White and the in-form Chris Wood struck before halftime. Substitute Taiwo Awoniyi rounded off the scoring to seal a sixth consecutive win for Forest in stoppage time.

Wolves stay just outside the relegation zone, albeit only on goal difference, as the side suffered its first defeat under new boss Vitor Pereira.

Forest remains third in the table, but moves level on points with second-placed Arsenal.

Even if a shock title challenge proves beyond Espirito Santo's men, they are building up an impressive cushion in the race for Champions League soccer next season.

Forest is five points clear of fifth-placed Newcastle, and six in front of struggling champion Manchester City, currently sitting in sixth place.

A top-four finish would guarantee a return to the continent's elite competition for the first time in 45 years for the two-time European champion.

However, fifth could also be good enough, depending on how English clubs fare in European competition this season.

"It feels good. We work very hard to achieve what we have," Espirito Santo told Sky Sports. "Today was a tough game. Wolves had chances, and Matz Sels was amazing to keep us in the game. I'm really proud of the work ethic of the players and the desire to go in front and score.

"It's a very tough competition. We are always going to face tough opponents. We need to stay humble. We haven't achieved anything yet, we need to work until the end, and this can lead us to good moments."

The Portuguese coach said he was keeping his feet firmly on the ground, despite his side's form that has seen it claim 40 points from 20 games, matching Leicester City's haul at the same stage of the 2015-16 season when it shocked everyone and won the Premier League.

"My ambition is always the same," he said. "As coaching staff, we have this natural ambition to improve the players, this is what we are obsessed with.

"If we improve the players, then the team will improve. And if the team improves, then the club will improve and the city will be happy."

Espirito Santo believes the confidence of his players will be high going into their home Premier League clash with Liverpool on Jan 14.

"The performance and the results help with confidence — you saw Callum Hudson-Odoi and Anthony Elanga today, they were confident and creating many problems (for Wolves)," he said.

"This is what we want to see from our players, to feel good on the pitch and to work hard. But, before Liverpool, we have Luton Town (on Saturday) in the FA Cup."

Gibbs-White savored his return to the club where he spent the early part of his career.

In front of the new England manager Thomas Tuchel, who was watching from the stands, the midfielder presented his case for further international recognition with aplomb, thanks to a cool finish off the back of Elanga's pass.

Agencies