Neco Williams praised Nottingham Forest goalkeeper Keylor Navas after his heroics against Leeds United on Sunday. The Costa Rican stopper checked in from PSG on transfer deadline day and after a couple of training sessions, he was thrust into action.
Forest defeated the Whites 1-0. The result saw ‘Yank Lampard’ trend on Twitter, with the Leeds fans who had travelled to the City Ground voicing their displeasure towards Jesse Marsch. Their protests prevailed as the American was dismissed yesterday.
The Forest performance wasn’t particularly impressive. The Reds are unbeaten in 2023 in the Premier League but this wasn’t a vintage performance. Brennan Johnson did get the game’s only goal, however, to give Forest a huge three points.
Things could have been different were it not for Navas between the posts. His debut was arguably one of the best on record in a Forest shirt, with all four of the saves he made coming inside the opening 45 minutes of the Premier League clash.
Williams was impressed. He started the game at right-back and after the game he raved about Navas, telling BBC Radio Nottingham: “What a debut (for Keylor Navas), massive, massive saves. He kept us in it and we’re thankful for him. What a career he’s had and what a career he’s having. It’s not easy making your Premier League debut against Leeds.”
Navas praised by Williams as Forest beat Leeds
Williams himself was okay during the game. He’s come in for some criticism during 2022/23 but as a youngster, there is hope that he can still develop into a fine City Ground performer. Navas, however, was unbelievable against Leeds.
It’s hard to picture a better debut, certainly in recent memory. Navas was called into action after just two minutes, denying Luis Sinisterra and then leaping on the rebound like a 21-year-old, showcasing unbelievable reactions.
Forest will have forked out a sizeable amount in wages to take Navas on loan. If he makes a few more performances of this nature, however, he will have provided worth his weight in gold for the Reds.