Chris Wood scored a hat-trick as Nottingham Forest delivered an emphatic response to last weekend’s 5-0 defeat at Bournemouth by hitting seven past Brighton at the City Ground.
The loss at Vitality Stadium was Forest’s first since early December but they roared back to winning ways in front of their own supporters, registering their biggest-ever Premier League victory against the sorry Seagulls.
Nuno Espirito Santo’s side took a 12th-minute lead when Lewis Dunk inadvertently turned Morgan Gibbs-White’s low cross into his own net from close range.
Gibbs-White doubled the hosts’ advantage with a glancing header from Anthony Elanga’s corner, and it was 3-0 just after the half-hour mark when Wood nodded home Elanga’s cross for his 15th Premier League goal of the season – his most in a single campaign in the competition.
Brighton were unlucky not to score themselves before half-time, Yankuba Minteh shooting straight at Forest goalkeeper Matz Sels in a one-on-one and Danny Welbeck’s effort failing to cross the goalline after striking the underside of the crossbar.
Seagulls boss Fabian Hurzeler made a triple half-time change in an effort to stem the flow of Forest attacks, but Wood tapped home another Elanga delivery to make it 4-0 after 64 minutes.
And just moments later, Tariq Lamptey wrestled Gibbs-White to the ground at a Forest corner to give the New Zealand striker a golden opportunity to complete his hat-trick from the penalty spot.
The 33-year-old sent Bart Verbruggen the wrong way to make it 5-0 and became the first Forest player to score a hat-trick at home since Nigel Clough in December 1987 against QPR.
Wales full-back Neco Williams then made it six after latching on to a loose ball deep inside the area.
There was still time for Jota Silva to get in on the act, firing home a low shot from Verbruggen’s misplaced pass in added time as Forest sealed their biggest league victory since beating Chelsea 7-0 at the City Ground in the old First Division back in April 1991.
The win lifts Forest level on points with second-placed Arsenal – who play Manchester City on Sunday – while Brighton stay ninth.
Seventh heaven for Forest after tactical switch
Nuno responded to last Saturday’s sobering loss on the south coast by switching to a back three and handing Brazilian midfielder Danilo his first start since suffering a broken ankle against the Cherries on the opening day of the season.
The change in formation, which the Forest boss said was intended to make his team more compact and give their attacking players greater freedom in the final third, proved a masterstroke.
The hosts were rampant in the first half and could have led by more at the interval as Williams struck the outside of the post with a low drive and Wood had a fizzing effort tipped over by Verbruggen.
Elanga and Gibbs-White were a threat every time they ventured forward, with Brighton left-back Lamptey enduring a particularly tough afternoon as he struggled to cope with former Manchester United man Elanga’s pace and trickery.
The goals appeared to have dried up early in the second half, but Elanga relit the fuse, delivering a pinpoint cross for Wood’s second of the game at the end of a mazy run.
Wood and Elanga have now combined for 11 league goals since the start of the campaign – only Chelsea duo Cole Palmer and Nicolas Jackson have combined for more with 12.
Other sides may have been tempted to shut up shop after the New Zealand frontman completed his treble, but not Forest. They continued to press forward and after Taiwo Awoniyi’s effort was parried by Verbruggen, Williams was in the right place at the right time to lash home his first club goal since April 2023.
And Silva’s stoppage-time strike – his first in the Premier League – capped an unforgettable afternoon for the East Midlands club.
Seagulls suffer in heaviest defeat for 67 years
Brighton boss Hurzeler was without midfielders Carlos Baleba and Yasin Ayari but still fielded an attacking team, restoring Georginio Rutter and Minteh to an XI that also featured Welbeck, Joao Pedro and Kaoru Mitoma – who was the subject of a failed bid from Saudi club Al-Nassr late in the transfer window.
Before the game, Hurzeler said he wanted to “dominate” Forest and there was no shortage of attacking intent from the visitors early on – but those efforts were undermined by a defensive horror show.
Gibbs-White and Elanga were given far too much space in the lead-up to Forest’s first and third goals of the afternoon, while Gibbs-White also managed to outjump both Welbeck and Lamptey for the home side’s second.
Hurzeler replaced Jack Hinshelwood, Mitoma and Pedro with Matt O’Riley, Simon Adingra and Diego Gomez at the interval, but if Brighton’s fans thought things could only get better in the second half, they were wildly mistaken.
Elanga was allowed to dart into the penalty area unchallenged to set up Wood’s second, while Lamptey can have few complaints at referee Simon Hooper’s decision to point to the spot after dragging Gibbs-White to the floor.
Verbruggen’s stoppage-time clearance into the feet of Silva summed up a truly miserable afternoon for Brighton, who suffered their heaviest league defeat since a 9-0 loss at Middlesbrough on the opening day of the 1958-59 Second Division season.
