Nottingham Forest vs Manchester City: Delap Double, Report

Nottingham Forest vs Manchester City finished 3-1 to the hosts at the City Ground on Saturday 7 November 2026. Liam Delap scored twice, Jair Cunha added an early opener, and Rayan Cherki replied for City after the break. This report, published on Sunday 8 November, covers the scorers, the line-ups, the numbers and the effect on the Premier League table.

The kick-off was 19:30 SAST, so the match ended close to 21:30 in South Africa. Forest led 2-0 at half-time and never lost control of the game, even though City held most of the ball.

What was the score in Nottingham Forest vs Manchester City?

Nottingham Forest beat Manchester City 3-1, with the home side ahead 2-0 at half-time. Samuel Barrott refereed the match at the City Ground, and the result gave Forest only their second league win of the season.

City arrived in second place, so the outcome was a surprise on paper. However, they had lost their previous two league games, so the visitors were not in the best form. As a result, the three points were a big lift for a Forest side that had won just once in their first nine league games.

Who scored in Nottingham Forest vs Manchester City?

Jair Cunha scored in the sixth minute, Liam Delap in the 18th and 73rd, and Rayan Cherki scored City’s only goal in the 52nd minute. Delap’s first goal was set up by Xaver Schlager, while Morgan Gibbs-White provided the pass for his second.

Jair gave the hosts the perfect start, and Delap doubled the lead twelve minutes later. In other words, City were two goals down inside 18 minutes. Delap’s second goal then came after City had pulled one back, so the home side restored their two-goal cushion with 17 minutes left.

How did the match unfold at the City Ground?

Forest scored twice in the first 18 minutes, City responded through Cherki in the 52nd minute, and Delap sealed it in the 73rd. The visitors made two changes at half-time, with Nico O’Reilly replacing Josko Gvardiol and Matheus Nunes replacing Marc Guéhi.

That reshuffle gave City more energy, and Cherki’s goal seven minutes after the restart briefly made the game tense. Even so, Forest answered well. Dan Ndoye and Luca Netz came on at 65 minutes for James McAtee and Daniel Muñoz, and Ryan Yates made way for Ibrahim Sangaré in the 79th minute. Therefore, the hosts kept fresh legs in midfield while they defended their lead.

Phil Foden replaced Enzo Fernández for City in the 78th minute, but the visitors could not find a second goal. Meanwhile, Delap was replaced by Igor Jesus in the 87th minute for the closing stages.

What did the match statistics show?

City dominated possession with 78 percent to Forest’s 22 percent, but Forest created the better chances. The hosts had 11 shots, five on target, against City’s 12 shots and four on target. Forest also made 208 passes to City’s 771, which shows how direct the home side were.

The expected goals figures were close, at 1.1 for Forest and 1.78 for City. So the visitors had the bigger share of quality chances on paper, yet Forest scored three from five shots on target. City won seven corners to Forest’s three, but corners did not turn into goals.

Forest committed 13 fouls to City’s seven, and they collected four yellow cards. City were not booked at all. Even so, Forest’s discipline held up, because none of the bookings were red.

What were the line-ups and cards in Nottingham Forest vs Manchester City?

Forest started in a 3-4-2-1 and City in a 4-2-3-1. The starters are listed below as shown in the official match data.

Nottingham Forest (3-4-2-1): Sels; Jair, Milenković, Murillo; Muñoz, Yates, Schlager, Williams; McAtee, Gibbs-White; Delap.

Manchester City (4-2-3-1): Donnarumma; Khusanov, Rúben Dias, Guéhi, Gvardiol; Anderson, Fernández; Ndiaye, Cherki, Doku; Haaland.

McAtee, Ndoye, Netz and Igor Jesus were the four Forest players booked, with the last two cautions coming in stoppage time. For City, Erling Haaland started up front, but he did not score.

What does the result mean for the Premier League table?

Forest move up to 16th on nine points after ten games, while City stay second on 21 points but are now six behind leaders Arsenal. The BBC Sport Premier League table shows the current order, and Forest are two points above the bottom three of Manchester United, Crystal Palace and Sunderland.

For City, the defeat is a third league loss in a row after Aston Villa beat them 2-1 on 24 October and Brighton won 1-0 at the Etihad on 31 October. We covered the second of those in our Manchester City vs Brighton report. In between, City still won 3-2 away to RB Leipzig in the Champions League, as our RB Leipzig vs Manchester City report explains.

Forest, on the other hand, had lost 1-0 to Arsenal, drawn 1-1 at Ipswich and lost 2-0 at Brentford in their previous three league games. You can read our Ipswich vs Nottingham Forest report for the 1-1 draw on 23 October. Before this game, we also published a Nottingham Forest vs Manchester City preview with the head-to-head and form.

What are Forest and Manchester City’s next fixtures?

Forest play at Bournemouth on 21 November and host Chelsea on 27 November, while City host Fulham on 21 November and Napoli in the Champions League on 24 November. City then travel to face Arsenal on 29 November, in what could shape the title race.

Forest also visit Hull City on 2 December, then host Brighton on 5 December. Follow every match as it happens on our live scores page, and see the wider picture in our Premier League predictions hub.

Leaders Arsenal also won on the same day, beating Hull City 1-0 in our Arsenal vs Hull City report.

What are the quick answers about Nottingham Forest vs Manchester City?

The short answers below cover the score, the scorers, the table and the next games.

What was the score in Nottingham Forest vs Manchester City?

Nottingham Forest won 3-1 at the City Ground on Saturday 7 November 2026, after leading 2-0 at half-time.

Who scored for Nottingham Forest against Manchester City?

Jair Cunha scored in the sixth minute and Liam Delap scored twice, in the 18th and 73rd minutes. Rayan Cherki scored City’s goal in the 52nd minute.

Where are Nottingham Forest and Manchester City in the table?

Forest are 16th on nine points after ten games, and Manchester City are second on 21 points, six behind Arsenal.

When do Nottingham Forest and Manchester City play next?

Forest visit Bournemouth on 21 November, and City host Fulham on the same day, before City face Arsenal on 29 November.

Also from the weekend: read our Manchester United vs Aston Villa report for the 4-4 draw.

And read our Crystal Palace vs Liverpool report for the 3-1 result.