Nottingham Forest Vs Manchester City, Rayan Cherki's New Level

NOTTINGHAM, SATURDAY – Manchester City is an exception in the list of giant teams that have not been able to conquer Nottingham Forest this season. City's record of seven consecutive victories in all competitions was extended after overcoming Forest, 2-1, at the City Ground Stadium, Saturday (27/12/2025) evening WIB. Rayan Cherki shone brightly by contributing one goal and one assist.

The title of Forest as a giant dampening team has faded after failing to hold back City. Previously, the team managed by Sean Dyche was relatively able to compete with major teams such as Liverpool, Tottenham Hotspur, and Manchester United. However, City is on a different level, especially with Cherki's sharpness becoming more refined in each of his matches.

The performance of the French midfielder was briefly disrupted by an injury at the beginning of the season. The recovery process from the injury hindered Cherki's adaptation, who had just joined City from Olympique Lyon this season. After recovering, Cherki gradually began to find his best form of play.

I know my abilities. I provided a great pass for Tijjani Reijnders and it was a great finish.

Cherki reached a new level with City in the match against Forest. The 22-year-old player orchestrated City's first goal scored by Tijjani Reijnders in the 48th minute. Nottingham only needed six minutes to respond through Omari Hutchinson. As the match seemed destined to end in a draw, Cherki's powerful shot brought City back into the lead.

This marks the first time for Cherki to contribute both a goal and an assist in a single match while wearing the City jersey. His additional assist to Reijnders places him on par with Bruno Fernandes from Manchester United in terms of assist contributions. They both top the list of the most assists in the Premier League, with a total of seven assists each.

"I know what I'm capable of. I provided a great pass for Tijjani Reijnders, and it was a great finish. I'm very proud of the team because today was a big win. When you come here, you know that Nottingham is a big team with many good players. I'm very proud to have scored for my team because the season is still long and we need every point," Cherki said in a post-match interview with Sky Sports.

Without Cherki, City could have left the City Ground empty-handed. This was because Forest played a very structured and organized game. To hinder City's attempts to build attacks from the back, Dyche deployed a 4-5-1 formation when out of possession.

The Forest players also attempted to control the match without ball possession. They did this by forcing the opponents to direct their attacks to the points they desired. Forest's defensive midfielder, Elliot Anderson, was very tenacious in breaking up City's attacking sequences. He was recorded as the player with the most duel wins, totaling 10 times, throughout the match.

Thanks to Anderson's skill in protecting the four defenders, City striker Erling Haaland was unable to make much progress. The supply of the ball to Haaland was hindered, resulting in only 14 touches of the ball. Haaland became the fourth player from the bottom with the fewest touches of the ball throughout the match.

"I had to play further up front (in the second half) so that they had difficulty deciding who to mark. That goal is a perfect example of that. Of course, Cherki knows how to find passes like that, and I was able to finish it. He is very good; he finds space, and when he gets the ball, you have to be ready and in the right position," said Reijnders.

Hutchinson has become the most troublesome figure for City's defense. When Forest's attempts to build an attack hit a dead end, the former Chelsea player always finds a way to bypass Nico O’Reilly's guard. A moment of negligence from the defenders allows Hutchinson to pose a threat. This was evident when the City defenders were drawn to Igor Jesus's movement, allowing Hutchinson to sneak the ball freely inside the penalty area.

The victory over Forest temporarily places City at the top of the English Premier League standings with a total of 40 points. City's points tally could potentially be surpassed by Arsenal if they manage to overcome Brighton and Hove Albion in another match.