Aside from the first game of last season, a 1-0 defeat against Brighton & Hove Albion a day before anyone else in the division had played, Nottingham Forest had not been in the Championship relegation zone since February 2012. Thanks to a 3-0 win against Ipswich Town in their final game of this season they managed to avoid a relegation that, even by their standards of dramatic incompetence, would have been extraordinary.
“The vow is we must never, ever allow Forest to be in this situation again,” the relieved manager, Mark Warburton, said after the game. “Can’t happen. The last five or six weeks, the relegation dogfight, it’s not what we’re about. We told the players: ‘Remember the feeling at kick‑off’, and that must never happen again.”
Two goals from Britt Assombalonga and another by Chris Cohen were enough for Forest who, with an impending ownership change as the unpopular Fawaz al-Hasawi prepares to sell the club, can at least now make a fresh start in the Championship. “Dropping into League One would’ve put us back two years,” Warburton said. “Have no doubts about the significance of that result today for Nottingham Forest.”
Forest avoided being relegated on a dramatic final day as Rafael Benítez led Newcastle United back into the Premier League as champions – a 3-0 victory against Barnsley snatching top spot from Brighton & Hove Albion, who drew 1-1 with 10-man Aston Villa. At the other end of the Championship table, Blackburn Robers became the first Premier League winners to be relegated to League One despite defeating Brentford 3-1 at Griffin Park.
Before the game at the City Ground Mick McCarthy promised that he wanted to give the Ipswich fans “something to smile about” despite having nothing to play for, but one imagines not many of the travelling support came away with grins on their faces. This was not so much a bad performance as a non-performance, unable to take advantage of the inevitable nerves from a relegation-threatened side.
Forest started with some purpose, going close through a curling Jamie Ward shot in the third minute, but the nerves showed when Jordan Smith fumbled a routine cross, like a child handed a valuable vase and sternly told to absolutely, 100%, under no circumstances break it. Shortly afterwards, though, Smith made a save that Warburton described as “world-class”, tipping the ball on to the bar while changing direction after a close‑range Grant Ward shot took a deflection. Given the nerves that showed in leaden legs and confused decision-making early on, that save probably kept Forest up.
Some community-spirited Ipswich fans helped those in the home stands out by keeping them abreast, in the form of chanted schadenfreude, of the relevant scores elsewhere as first Blackburn then Birmingham took the lead. But then Forest scored themselves. Ward ran free into the area from a throw-in and lifted the ball over Bartosz Bialkowski but was comprehensively fouled by the Ipswich goalkeeper. Assombalonga hammered the penalty high to the keeper’s right and for a few moments at least the tension was broken, helped shortly afterwards when Freddie Sears went to cross, kicked air and fell over. It was tricky to tell which was greeted with the loudest cheer.
Forest still looked jittery after the break, sitting deep and with little composure to their play. But after 57 minutes they doubled the lead: David Vaughan squared to the captain, Cohen, around 25 yards out and his shot took a flick off a defender on its way to the top corner. There could not have been a more appropriate and popular scorer than the club captain, making his 300th appearance after last season returning from his third cruciate ligament injury.
Ten minutes later Forest had the chance to remove all doubt, when professional irritant Ward won another penalty, this time barged to the ground by substitute Josh Emmanuel. Assombalonga stepped up and side-footed to Bialkowski’s left but the goalkeeper produced a wonderful save to tip the ball over the bar.
No matter, though. Five minutes later Assombalonga jinked down the side of the area, was shown on to his left foot by a backtracking Luke Chambers and, accepting the invitation, launched the ball into the roof of the net with that very foot. A few moments later Vaughan, as so often Forest’s most composed character in midfield, crunched into a (fair) tackle and, for the first time in a while at the City Ground, there was a sense that everything was going to be OK.
Warburton’s thoughts have already turned to the summer and next season, with a clear idea of how he wants to shape the squad with the help of Frank McParland, the director of football he called “the best in the business”. Warburton said: “We’re not proud of being in a relegation fight. It’s a muted celebration in that respect but the job’s been done and now we can build.”
Newcastle snatch title in dramatic finale
At St James’ Park, goals from Ayoze Pérez, Chancel Mbemba and the substitute Dwight Gayle secured a deserved 3-0 victory against Barnsley in front of the owner, Mike Ashley, and a crowd of 52,276 at St James’ Park, and Jack Grealish’s last-gasp equaliser for Aston Villa denied Brighton victory to allow the Magpies to leap-frog them into top spot.
Rafael Benítez, the Newcastle manager, has insisted for weeks that promotion was the only objective, but as he prepares for the talks with Ashley which will determine whether or not he remains on Tyneside he will do so with a bonus piece of silverware sitting in the trophy cabinet.
Shorn of the services of Jamaal Lascelles and the winger Matt Ritchie through suspension and injury respectively, Benítez was forced to play the midfielder Isaac Hayden in central defence, although his problems grew when the former Arsenal man had to leave the field with a head injury. As a result, the Magpies were disjointed as they set about their task with Barnsley enjoying the better of the opening 15 minutes.
However, as the midfielder Christian Atsu roused them from their slumbers, they slipped into gear and took the lead with 23 minutes gone. Jonjo Shelvey expertly clipped Aleksandar Mitrovic’s lay-off into the path of Atsu, who cut inside the full-back Callum Elder before back-heeling the ball to DeAndre Yedlin to cross for Pérez to cleverly flick home.
The Barnsley goalkeeper, Adam Davies, did well to turn Atsu’s fierce shot over the bar after the winger had tricked his way past Elder with the visitors under intense pressure, and he excelled himself a minute before the break to deny the same man as he fired hard and low towards the far post.
The substitute Massadio Haïdara blazed over from 12 yards just before the break and Pérez tested Davies seconds after it as Newcastle dominated but struggled to kill off the game. That changed when Davies dived to save Pérez’s stinging 59th-minute effort, only for Mbemba to follow up from close range and make it 2-0.
Davies was called up once again 10 minutes later to tip over Mitrovic’s header and Shelvey struck the foot of the post two minutes later, but opposite number Rob Eliot had to make late saves from substitutes Marley Watkins and Elliot Lee to preserve his clean sheet. Gayle added a third at the death and news of Villa’s equaliser sent the home fans into raptures.
At Villa Park, the Brighton goalkeeper David Stockdale failed to deal with Jack Grealish’s 89th-minute effort as the Seagulls were held to a 1-1 draw by 10-man Aston Villa. Glenn Murray’s second-half penalty had put Brighton on the brink after Nathan Baker was sent off for bringing down Sam Baldock, but Brighton could not capitalise.
The Seagulls were already promoted, ending a 34-year exile from the top flight, and victory would have seen them go up as champions but they lacked urgency and rhythm for long spells.
Chris Hughton, the Brighton manager, said: “Today is a negative day, it’s difficult, but there are far more pluses. What these lads have achieved this season has been magnificent. David has been excellent for us all season and he had made two very good saves from free-kicks before. There’s never any portion of blame. We have to accept it as a team.
“For us the season is finished and we have achieved our goal. We’re playing in a division where there are some very big teams, who have spent big money, and we have managed to come in the top two.”
Brighton rode their luck in the first half and Henri Lansbury wasted a glorious Villa chance as the home side finished a disappointing season 13th with the manager, Steve Bruce, needing to revamp his squad in the summer.
Villa, relegated last year, had long hoped there would be a promotion party in Birmingham but it was the visitors who were celebrating going up – even if they struggled to get going. Lansbury’s low effort was shovelled wide by Stockdale during a low key start. It was competitive enough but there was little action until Lansbury somehow managed to head wide from five yards after Sébastien Pocognoli chested the ball into his path.
Brighton seemed too relaxed over their title chase and needed Stockdale to bail them out after another Pocognoli error after 33 minutes. The on-loan West Bromwich Albion defender played a blind backpass to slip in Scott Hogan but Stockdale deflected his shot wide and the goalkeeper was then needed again to save Conor Hourihane’s free kick.
There was little on offer from Brighton and they survived a huge penalty scare five minutes after the restart when Lewis Dunk tackled Keinan Davis but the referee, Darren Bond, waved away Villa’s protests. But the visitors suddenly woke up as Murray headed wide and then Baldock forced Sam Johnstone into a smart save just before the hour. And the title swung Brighton’s way when they went ahead after 64 minutes. Murray slipped in Baldock and he managed to scuff an effort at Johnstone, only for the referee to rule Baker had fouled him before he got his shot away. The defender was sent off and Murray scored from the spot, his 23rd goal of the season.
Four minutes later Brighton should have doubled their lead when James Chester blocked Baldock’s effort following Tommy Elphick’s short backpass. But while it remained 1-0 there was always a chance the Seagulls could lose the title and Stockdale had to produce a fine stop from Hourihane’s free kick with five minutes left. However, the 31-year-old then cost his side the league title when he allowed Grealish’s low 25-yard effort to sneak in with a minute left.
The play-off places had already been decided but Reading guaranteed third in the table with a 4-2 triumph at Burton Albion. Goals from Joseph Mendes, Jordan Obita and Yann Kermorgant put the Royals 3-0 up before Ben Turner and Cauley Woodrow strikes threatened a comeback, only for Lewis Grabban to fire Reading’s fourth six minutes from time.
The Huddersfield goalkeeper Danny Ward will be suspended for their play-off tie against Sheffield Wednesday after he was sent off in a 3-0 defeat against Cardiff City in which a Joe Bennett brace added to Kenneth Zohore’s opener.
Sheffield Wednesday lost 2-1 against their play-off rivals Fulham, with a Neeskens Kebano double turning the game around after Sam Winnall had broken the deadlock nine minutes in. The Owls had Marco Matias sent off on the stroke of half-time.
The already-relegated pair Rotherham and Wigan Athletic bowed out with 1-1 draws against Derby County and Leeds United respectively, Norwich City thrashed Queens Park Rangers 4-0 and Wolverhampton Wanderers beat Preston North End 1-0.
Blackburn suffered relegation despite their solid victory against Brentford at Griffin Park. Rovers were demoted on goal difference after Birmingham and Nottingham Forest both won. Charlie Mulgrew and Danny Guthrie gave Blackburn the perfect start as they found themselves two up inside 16 minutes, but results elsewhere soon began to go against them.
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