Nottingham Forest managed to pick up an impressive point on Sunday at Stamford Bridge, holding Chelsea to a 1-1 draw. This performance is all the more remarkable as the team had to play the last quarter of an hour with ten men after Ward-Prowse’s second yellow card.
At the end of the match, Chelsea of course sought to snatch victory, but came up against Matz Sels. The Red Devil impressed with a series of spectacular saves, including a double save from a Palmer strike and a Nkunku header.
Sels impresses Chelsea
Sels even received praise from his coach. “He kept us in the match with his incredible saves,” Nuno Espirito Santo said after the match. “Sanchez also made some good saves for Chelsea, but Matz was exceptional. If we come away with a point, it is thanks to his brilliant performance.”
Our compatriot thus silenced many skeptics, because he was not always considered indisputable at Forest in recent months. Even within the club, he wasn’t their first choice. He was only signed at the end of January, when Forest had failed to sign a long list of other goalkeepers.
Forest abandon plans for another goalkeeper
In August, Forest were still actively looking for a new goalkeeper. Players like Ramsdale (Arsenal, now at Southampton), Johnstone (Crystal Palace, now at Wolves), Neto (Bournemouth, now at Arsenal), Kelleher (Liverpool) and Samba (Lens) had been approached. However, none of them ultimately joined the club.
The search for a goalkeeper was expected to resume in January, but The Athletic suggests that Sels’ strong performances could push the club to abandon this plan. Great success for our compatriot, whose next objective will undoubtedly be to become the undisputed number one among the Red Devils
