Nottingham Forest kep another clean sheet last night during a 1-0 victory over Crystal Palace and defensively things have improved considerably.
Chris Wood scored his fifth goal of the season at the other end last night as Forest went up to eighth place in the Premier League.
Goals win matches but defences win prizes is an old cliche and Forest have worked tirelessly to improve the rearguard during the summer.
The signing of Nikola Milenkovic has really helped Forest and Jamie Carragher raved about the Serbian captain during last night’s win.
There were some other top performers last night too. Alan Smith praised Elliot Anderson, whilst Nicolas Dominguez produced a workmanlike performance.
There was another top performer among the Forest ranks and without his quality, the result might have gone against the Reds last night.
Matz Sels starred against Crystal Palace
Much has been made about the goalkeeping position at Forest – and it’s one that hasn’t truly been nailed since the Reds returned to the Premier League.
Sels is the man in possession of the gloves at the moment and on last night’s showing, they’re his to lose.
Against Chelsea before the international break, Sels was sensational making seven saves and wowing Joe Hart.
Against Palace, he was in tip-top form once again and Who Scored had him down as making another seven saves at the City Ground.
Sels produced one save from Eberechi Eze that seemed to defy logic, stretching out a palm and pushing a swerving effort onto the crossbar.
The 32-year-old seemed pumped throughout the contest and this highlighted exactly why Nuno Espirito Santo has placed his faith in him.
Last month, following a draw with Brighton, Sels was hammered by Shay Given for a free-kick he conceded to Danny Welbeck.
However, he looks to have rediscovered himself after that and any calls for Carlos Miguel to step into the breach appear to have ceased.
Sels is very much the Forest number one
After trying a number of goalkeepers since returning to the Premier League it’s good that there is a clear number one now.
Sels is that man and it would seem as though he’s going to keep the gloves across the campaign.
Forest did consider signing Caoimhin Keller from Liverpool before the deadline in the summer – but ultimately chose against it.
| Position | Team | Played MP | Won W | Drawn D | Lost L | For GF | Against GA | Diff GD | Points Pts |
| 6 |  ChelseaChelsea | 8 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 17 | 10 | 7 | 14 |
| 7 |  TottenhamTottenham | 8 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 18 | 9 | 9 | 13 |
| 8 |  Nottm ForestNottingham Forest | 8 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 8 | 6 | 2 | 13 |
| 9 |  NewcastleNewcastle | 8 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 8 | 8 | 0 | 12 |
| 10 |  FulhamFulham | 8 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 11 | 11 | 0 | 11 |
Given the form that Sels is showing right now, that might have seemed a waste of money and in the short term Forest look to be in safe hands.
His performance last night was one that suggested he’s in confident form and the clean sheet will only enhance how good he feels right now.
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