Chris Wood netted a stunning hat-trick as Nottingham Forest thrashed Brighton 7-0 at the City Ground on Saturday, reigniting their charge for next season’s Champions League.
Morgan Gibbs-White, Neco Williams, and Jota Silva were also on target after Lewis Dunk’s own goal opened the scoring in a sensational performance from Nuno Espirito Santo’s side, who bounced back emphatically from last weekend’s 5-0 defeat at Bournemouth.
The dominant victory moves Forest level on points with second-placed Arsenal and extends their lead over sixth-placed Chelsea to seven points.
With English clubs performing strongly in Europe this season, a fifth-place finish in the Premier League is expected to be enough for Champions League qualification.
Forest, two-time European Cup winners under Brian Clough in 1979 and 1980, last played in Europe in 1996. However, a remarkable run of 10 wins from their last 12 games has put them firmly on course to end that long wait for continental football.
In doing so, Forest became just the second team in Premier League history to respond to a five-goal defeat with a victory by the same margin or greater.
“That is exactly what we wanted after last week and exactly what the fans wanted,” said Gibbs-White.
“Last week was nowhere near our standards, and we’ve been working hard to put things right. The lads were incredible today. We completely nullified everything they did and caught them on the counter. We were clinical in the final third.”
Brighton boss Fabian Hürzeler fielded an attacking lineup featuring five forwards, but his bold approach backfired as the Seagulls were torn apart by Forest’s pace and precision in attack.
Dunk’s own goal in the 12th minute set the tone for a torrid afternoon for Brighton, as Gibbs-White’s dangerous low cross forced the Brighton captain into a costly mistake.
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