Nottingham Forest drew 1-1 with Newcastle, and perhaps the club’s supporters got a little glimpse into the future.
The share of the spoils at the City Ground, coupled with a defeat for West Ham against Arsenal, means that it’s mission accomplished for Vitor Pereira when it comes to keeping the Reds in the Premier League.
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Forest earned their point when Elliot Anderson scored in the dying embers of the contest after Harvey Barnes had fired Newcastle into the lead.
It was the defensive side of things that proved largely impressive against a wave of big-money Newcastle attackers and Forest fans, perhaps received a little teaser of what might be to come in the future.
Jair Cunha stars alongside Nikola Milenkovic as Forest draw
Forest lined up with three central defenders in the team, with Luca Netz playing on the left and Neco Williams reverting to right-back.
Pereira did switch things up midway through the first half, putting Netz further forward and going with a back four.
One man who continues to impress is Jair Cunha, and he looked at home alongside Milenkovic, who is looking like the perfect role model for the youngster.
Cunha was very impressive once again, showing strong positional sense, an intelligent approach to defending and also a desire to get forward and help with Forest attacks.
⭐How would you rate the performance of Jair Cunha against Newcastle on Sunday?
Let us know in the comments below!
Jair Cunha stats vs Newcastle
WhoScored shows just how good Cunha was against Newcastle.
They showcase that the young Brazilian made six clearances, with Milenkovic also making the same amount, as the pair worked well in tandem.
Cunha also made three tackles during the contest, with the 21-year-old completing 89.7% of his passes, showcasing that he’s capable of replacing Murillo should he leave in the summer.
Furthermore, the 21-year-old was dribbled past just once across the 90 minutes, with the youngster getting 49 touches of the ball.
There is naturally still more to come from such a young player but this was very encouraging and alongside Milenkovic, the pair could well be the starting central defenders next season.
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