Liam Delap scores twice as Nottingham Forest beat Manchester City 3-1 for City's third straight defeat

Forest strike early and often

Nottingham Forest pressed City from the first whistle and forced the kind of mistakes that cost the visitors dearly. Jair Cunha gave them the lead in the sixth minute, robbing Josko Gvardiol high up the pitch, driving into the area and slotting past Gianluigi Donnarumma. The goal ended a scoring drought at the City Ground that dated back to May. Liam Delap doubled the lead around the 18th or 19th minute, after Iliman Ndiaye and Elliot Anderson left the ball for each other in the Forest half, and he ran into the City area and fired past Donnarumma. Sources give slightly different minutes for the second goal, so the range is shown here.

City pull one back, then fade

City were two goals down inside 20 minutes and needed a quick response after the break. Rayan Cherki reduced the deficit in the 52nd minute with a half-volley, and the visitors pushed for an equaliser. Enzo Fernandez had the best chance to level in the 25th minute, when Marc Guehi's cross found him six yards out, but his header sailed over. Donnarumma conceded three goals in the match and has now gone another game without a clean sheet, according to the BBC's player ratings. The defeat was City's third straight league loss, and it came while an appeal against Premier League charges remains ongoing.

Delap's second goal settles it

Delap made it 3-1 in the 73rd minute. He found Morgan Gibbs-White deep inside the Forest half, Gibbs-White returned the pass, and Delap struck a left-footed shot into the top corner past Donnarumma. The New York Times described the goal as the breathing space Forest needed against a City side that had threatened a second-half comeback. Delap has now scored twice in one match for Forest after a club-record move from Chelsea reported at £45million. He had scored only once in his first eight games for the club before this match.

What the result means for the table

Forest's first home league win of the season is their first at the City Ground since April. It moves them up to 16th, out of the relegation zone, and sends Manchester United into the bottom three. Oliver Glasner's side had managed just one win from their opening nine games under the new manager. City, who had won their first seven games of the season according to The Guardian, drop to second in the table and trail Arsenal by six points. Arsenal beat Hull earlier on the same day. City now head into the international break with the gap to the league leaders widened.