Nuno Espirito Santo was ecstatic when Nottingham Forest defeated Fulham 3-1 last night, and he talked about one of his standout players.
The Reds needed a win after going five games without one. Callum Hudson-Odoi and Chris Wood scored within the first 20 minutes, and Morgan Gibbs-White added a third in stoppage time at the end of the first half.
Forest maintained a three-goal lead over anyone in a Premier League game for the first time since winning promotion. Tosin Adarabioyo pulled one back for Fulham just after halftime, but Forest held firm.
After the game, everyone was talking about one player in particular. Espirito Santo was asked about one of his great players during the Forest victory, and he couldn’t praise him enough.
Nuno Espirito Santo praised Nottingham Forest’s standout player
After last night, the reporters could have easily identified any player for Espirito Santo to evaluate. In fairness, at least seven players made a legitimate claim for Man of the Match versus Fulham.
Gibbs-White, however, received the award for the mantlepiece. He was fantastic once again, finishing the night with a goal and an assist to add to his season total.
Espirito Santo was quite impressed with the player’s performance as Forest earned a critical three points. He believes he is currently playing near to his full ability.
The head coach told BBC Sport: “He is undeniably skilled. He is almost at the level of a fully developed football player. He understands the game well, possesses talent, and can score.
“The hardest problem is to keep Morgan at that level while also maintaining the level of all the teammates. Many players played effectively behind him, allowing him to attack.”
Morgan Gibbs-White is going all the way to the top
It’s difficult to find superlatives for Gibbs-White on a weekly basis right now. Every time he plays in a Forest shirt, he appears to improve or do something unbelievably spectacular.
At the age of 24, Gibbs-White is a true star for Forest. He has performed admirably for England’s under-21s, and he will almost certainly be called up to the senior squad at some stage in the future.
According to Who Scored, Gibbs-White once again led Forest in important passes last night. He finished four in his 76 minutes on the field, and his assist for Hudson-Odoi was simply magnificent.
Espirito Santo avoided the desire to modify the Gibbs-White position.
After dropping Gibbs-White to center midfield against Crystal Palace, many fans expected him to start in that position against Fulham; however, Forest head coach Espirito Santo felt it was not appropriate.
Instead, he allowed Gibbs-White to wreck havoc for Forest in his natural number 10 position. In the first 45 minutes, he was unplayable, and Fulham’s Sasa Lukic in midfield couldn’t handle him.
Gibbs-White can play central midfield, which is a good option. He works hard enough to play in that position, but his ingenuity is more effective as a number ten.
Espirito Santo showed last night that he may prefer to have Gibbs-White in the Forest starting lineup. However, it is wonderful that he now has the option of playing in central midfield as well.
