EPL: Late Cherki strike sends Man City top at Forest

Rayan Cherki’s late winner propelled Manchester City back to the summit of the Premier League with a hard-fought victory over Nottingham Forest at the City Ground.

Forest threatened to dent City’s title push after Omari Hutchinson cancelled out Tijjani Reijnders’ second-half opener, but Pep Guardiola’s side found a decisive response late on to extend their winning run to eight matches across all competitions.

For Forest, the defeat was a bitter one on an emotional evening that included a tribute to club legend John Robertson.

Sean Dyche’s side have now suffered back-to-back league losses for the first time under his stewardship, following Monday’s 1–0 defeat at Fulham.

Goals and momentum swings

City dominated possession early but were frustrated in the first half by a resilient Forest defence, with Murillo and Nikola Milenkovic producing standout performances to keep the champions at bay.

The breakthrough arrived three minutes after the restart when Reijnders guided a composed finish beyond John Victor to give City the lead.

However, the Dutch midfielder was at fault soon after, losing possession on the edge of his own area to Morgan Gibbs-White, who released Igor Jesus to set up Hutchinson for his first Forest goal.

City pushed for a second, with John Victor denying Cherki by tipping his effort onto the post before producing another sharp save to stop Phil Foden.

Cherki delivers the decisive moment

Forest’s resistance eventually cracked in the 83rd minute when Cherki collected the ball on the edge of the area and drove an unstoppable shot into the corner, leaving the goalkeeper with no chance.

The late strike sealed a crucial win for City and underlined their push at the top of the table.