Igor Jesus finally opened his Premier League account to deepen Wolves’ woes as Sean Dyche’s revitalized Nottingham Forest claimed a 1-0 victory on Wednesday night.
The Brazilian forward initially saw a first-half header chalked off after a prolonged VAR check, but he made no mistake in the 72nd minute, rising above Emmanuel Agbadou and Sam Johnstone to guide a powerful effort into the net and secure all three points for the visitors.
Forest controlled much of the opening period but lacked precision in the final third. Dan Ndoye came closest before the interval, steering a header narrowly wide after finding space in the box.
Seven minutes before half-time, it looked like Forest had taken a deserved lead when Jesus connected with Omari Hutchinson’s teasing delivery.
However, VAR intervened, ruling that Ndoye was positioned offside and obstructing Johnstone’s view, denying the goal and offering Wolves a lifeline.
Gary O’Neil’s side responded with more urgency after the restart, with Jhon Arias squandering a golden opportunity by heading wide from close range following an excellent cross from Jackson Tchatchoua.
But Forest soon regained their foothold in the match. Johnstone was called into action to parry attempts from both Neco Williams and Hutchinson before Jesus delivered the decisive moment, bravely attacking the ball to break the deadlock.
Wolves’ blunt attack continued to be their undoing. They managed only a single effort on target and have now lost seven successive league games, equalling their longest top-flight losing run since the March-April 2012 slump that ended in relegation.
They have also failed to score in five straight matches, extending their drought to 557 minutes since Marshall Munetsi’s late-October goal against Burnley.
A meagre expected goals (xG) return of 0.72 from five attempts highlighted their struggles, while Forest produced only slightly better figures with an xG of 0.78 from 10 shots.
In the end, Jesus’ header proved the key difference, earning him his first Premier League goal in his 13th appearance.
Despite his slow league start, the Brazil international has already netted five times across other competitions this season.
