Forest’s mediocre home form had the travelling side Ipswich full of optimism. Ipswich’s previous trip on the road was filled with success at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium after defeating Ange Postecoglu’s side 4-1, whereas Forest’s previous home game saw them struggle against physically domineering Newcastle side in a 1-3 loss. The two historical titans last clashed at the City Ground on December 1st 2018, the result that day saw the home side pick up all three points in a 2-0 win. 

Forest were quick out the blocks controlling early stages of the game. Ryan Yates was close to putting the tricky trees 1-0 up from close range with summer signing Sammie Szmodics making a goal line clearance in front of his travelling away fans. The tides turned after a succession of dangerous Ipswich set pieces leaving Forest boxed in their own half. The pressure nearly led to the visitors equalising forcing Ola Aina into a goal line clearance from a towering Cameron Burgess header. Ipswich carried momentum into the latter stages of the first half forcing goalkeeper Matz Sels into a low save with Connor Chaplin seeing a rebound opportunity poked away by his own teammate Liam Delap. The first half of the game was a stalemate with neither side creating high quality chances to score.

Parallel to the first half, Forest were spriteful in the early stages subsequently leading to Forest substitute Jota Silva drawing a foul inside the Ipswich penalty area. Chris Wood stepped up to the penalty spot with the chance to improve his goalscoring record. Without hesitation Wood converted, taking his tally for the season up to 9 goals in 13 games. Wood’s emphatic form saw him equal Bryan Roy’s record of 24 goals for Forest in the Premier League era. The duration of the game was similar to the first half, passivity at both ends of the pitch with Forest generally managing the momentum of the game. Centre-half pairing, Murillo and Milenkovic remained strong, boasting defensive solidity that Forest have shown throughout the season. Defeat for Ipswich saw their 3 game unbeaten streak end with Forest bouncing back from a heavy defeat at the Emirates the gameweek prior.