Key Takeaways
- Morgan Gibbs-White’s seventh-minute goal sent Nottingham Forest into a European semi-final for the first time since 1984.
- Porto played 82 minutes with 10 men after Jan Bednarek was sent off for a high boot on Chris Wood.
- Forest will face fellow English side Aston Villa in the last four, with the winner heading to the final in Istanbul.
Nottingham Forest will meet Aston Villa in the Europa League semi-finals after a tense 1-0 win over Porto on Thursday night.
Morgan Gibbs-White smashed home the only goal early on, moments after the visitors were reduced to 10 men. Defender Jan Bednarek caught Chris Wood with a high boot and VAR told the referee to show a straight red.
The early strike should have opened the floodgates, but Forest wasted chance after chance. Igor Jesus headed over from close range and Murillo dragged wide, while Porto twice rattled Stefan Ortega’s crossbar through William Gomes and Alan Varela.
Manager Nuno Espírito Santo hugged every player at full-time as the City Ground celebrated a first European last-four spot since the days of Brian Clough. “One of the best nights I’ve had here,” Gibbs-White told fans.
Porto boss Vítor Pereira praised his team’s fight. “We played well even with 10 men,” he said. “We hit the bar twice and kept pushing. Football can be cruel.”
The win sets up an all-English tie with Villa next month, leaving Forest just two games from the Istanbul final.