Fulham completed a season double over Nottingham Forest with a 2-1 win at Craven Cottage, thanks to headed goals from Calvin Bassey and Emile Smith Rowe.
Forest, who had won their previous match in emphatic fashion, struggled to replicate that form and fell to their second defeat in three Premier League outings.
Smith Rowe opened the scoring in the 15th minute, rising to meet Adama Traore’s cross and nodding the ball past goalkeeper Matz Sels.
The Forest shot-stopper was called into action several times, making crucial saves to deny Raul Jimenez from distance and keep his team in contention.
Chris Wood, enjoying a prolific run of form, found the net in the 37th minute, his 18th goal of the season—restoring parity before halftime.
However, Fulham reasserted their dominance in the second half. Bassey capitalized on a corner flicked on by Jimenez, heading home in the 62nd minute to restore the hosts’ lead.
Despite a string of saves from Sels to deny Traore, Rodrigo Muniz, and Harrison Reed, Forest couldn’t mount a response.
The result leaves Forest in third place with 47 points, just three ahead of defending champions Manchester City, who cruised past Newcastle United with a 4-0 victory. Fulham, meanwhile, climbed to eighth place with 39 points.
Forest’s attack, which had been ruthless in their previous 7-0 rout of Brighton, struggled to make an impact. They managed only eight attempts, with just two on target, compared to Fulham’s 24 shots, 10 of which were on goal.
The xG (expected goals) metric further highlighted their lack of attacking threat, with Forest registering just 0.4 xG, while Fulham posted an impressive 2.24.
Despite the loss, Wood continued his red-hot form, notching his eighth goal in seven league games and reaching 20 goal involvements in a single campaign for the first time (18 goals, two assists).
Meanwhile, Jimenez maintained his strong recent performances, having now contributed to five goals in his last seven matches (four goals, one assist).
