Nottinghamshire

Pat Riddell
Fan writer

Image source, Getty Images

Having secured Premier League safety for another season, a summer of stability and careful planning is precisely what is needed for Nottingham Forest after the chaos that has gone before. And while it is yet to be announced, a new deal for Vitor Pereira is exactly what is needed.

There will, no doubt, be other managers available - Marco Silva, Oliver Glasner and Andoni Iraola to name a few - but we do not know which clubs will be after them. And, more importantly, having tried out multiple managers in one season, we have found one that fits.

Both Nuno Espirito Santo and Steve Cooper were successful because they understood the club. They understood the fans. They brought a sense of togetherness, unity and direction to a club that often loses its way.

Pereira arrived in February and not only fulfilled his role as firefighter - keeping the flames of relegation at bay - but took us to the brink of our first European final in over 40 years. And, unlike some other managers, managed to do it with a little humility as well as a great deal of flair.

The 57-year-old managed to shore up the defence, set free the talented attacking talent and bring the fringe players into the fold, all in the space of three months. We all know football is - or can be - entirely unpredictable, but he absolutely deserves the chance to continue everything he has started.

With a full pre-season, fresh transfer window and full squad of players to work with, then maybe we can look forward to a future where we are consistently at the right end of the table and pushing for honours - rather than avoiding the bottom three.

Forest now have a very solid base to work from and hopefully Pereira's experience and wisdom will cement those foundations and ensure we continue building in the right direction.

Find more from Pat Riddell at The Famous Club, external

Chris Collinson
BBC Sport statistician

Image source, Getty Images

Morgan Gibbs-White has been a talisman for Nottingham Forest this season, especially since the arrival of Vitor Pereira, and has forced himself into serious contention for Thomas Tuchel's England squad - and maybe starting XI.

He is the joint-top scorer in the Premier League this year, alongside Brentford striker Igor Thiago.

Gibbs-White has twice as many goals and assists in the league in 2026 as any of his rivals for the England No.10 spot.

While one of his goals was a penalty, four of Cole Palmer's six goals have come from the spot which makes Gibbs-White's goalscoring this year stand out even more.

He has 10 non-penalty goals this year, while no one else in contention for England's 10 spot has more than three.

We asked for your thoughts after Sunday's Premier League game between Manchester United and Nottingham Forest.

Here are some of your comments:

Man Utd fans

Eric: Great performance from United. Forget the contentious handball decision - they were well-deserved winners after hitting the post twice, numerous other missed chances and a fair share of contentious decisions against them throughout this season. Some 29 shots at goal and Forest's keeper did well - and fair play to them as they added to a very entertaining "dead rubber", as Chris Sutton put it.

Mark: A really enjoyable game where we really should have scored more but a shoutout to Forest for making a good effort. We really need to tighten the defence up, especially at full-back, where we aren't good enough. Replacing Casemiro will be pivotal so it will be interesting to see who's brought in. Onwards and upwards then - I hope we can win something next season and push on from there.

Andrew: I thought this was a good performance overall, albeit definitely lucky with the second goal. Forest have been a solid side of late so it's a good result. It's so obvious that the focus needs to be on the Casemiro replacement. Look at Gibbs-White and Anderson - they'd transform United! Amad was wasteful and poor again! The defence was awesome! I hope we make signings early, not after the World Cup!

Christine: It was a very open game, especially in the second half and Bruno could have had five assists. Shaw scoring gave the game some impetus, and United actually pressed forward, with Mbeumo and Cunha scoring. The defence was comfortable but could have been tighter with the two Forest goals. Coming third in the Premier League has to be Manchester United's best season in years. From the depths of despair, achieving top three behind Manchester City and Arsenal is fantastic and United need to spend well in the summer with personalities that will fight for the club.

Nottingham Forest fans

Kris: A great display from a tired and depleted Forest side, away at a rejuvenated Manchester United. Such a pity it was largely settled by a very dubious refereeing decision. A lot of talk will turn to where Anderson 'ends up' next season, but I don't see this United team and manager attracting a player of his calibre.

John: A terrific display from every player. We deserved at least a draw but it wasn't to be and we all know why. Thank goodness we didn't need the points to stay in the Premier League. A great game spoiled only by the referee. VAR was supposed to prevent that.

Jason: Forest played well, best in a while, shame about the handball incident, but the referee made a wrong call. He clearly handled the ball.

Jon: Excellent performance from Forest. Morgan Gibbs-White and Elliot Anderson are demonstrating why they must both go to the World Cup. As for the handball, a terrible decision that could cost the club £5m based on where we finish in the table. Another VAR-trocity!

If there is one thing in the modern game that is guaranteed to confuse it is the handball law.

And at Old Trafford on Sunday we were presented with the latest example of a decision which has left supporters scratching their heads.

The ball hit the arm of Bryan Mbeumo, who saw his shot blocked before it ran to Matheus Cunha to score Manchester United's second goal in their 3-2 win over Nottingham Forest.

United's celebrations were muted as Forest's players complained to referee Michael Salisbury. Everyone seemed to expect that the goal would be ruled out.

Former Forest defender Brian Laws questioned on BBC Radio Nottingham: "What is a handball offence? Quite clearly - both of his arms are out and it's touched his body and arm. That dropped the ball to his side and from which he took a shot.

"That means he gained an advantage from it and it's an offence.

"I'm scratching my head and wondering if it's because he didn't score and it landed somewhere else for someone else to score, but that initial part is handball without a doubt."

Nottingham Forest boss Vitor Pereira told BBC Radio Nottingham: "It was a decision that decided the game.

"When I looked at the image, I was completely convinced that they would cancel out the goal. In this moment, we don't know the rules and we need to go to school to learn again because they've changed the rules.

"I think we need to have a meeting with everybody to understand when it is a handball or not."

Pundits Dion Dublin and Mark Schwarzer join host Gabby Logan to bring you the action and talking points from Friday's and Sunday's Premier League fixtures.

Watch on BBC iPlayer here

And listen back to full match commentaries on BBC Sounds:

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