If anyone was in doubt, this match provided compelling evidence that there are simply too many flaws in football’s ever-evolving laws. Nottingham Forest made a formal complaint about the referee, Robert Jones, after a contentious defeat at Manchester United in August and his decision to give Willy Boly a second yellow card for a tackle on Adam Smith 24 minutes into this contest, despite Boly cleanly winning the ball, left Forest dumbfounded, wiping Professional Game Match Officials Limited off the Christmas card list. Under the rules VAR was powerless to intervene. One can only wonder what the officials at Stockley Park must have been thinking.
Forest will point to that decision, leaving them to play with 10 men for more than 70 minutes, as a major factor in a crushing defeat at home to Bournemouth. It seemed as though Forest had successfully rallied to earn a point but Dominic Solanke completed his hat-trick deep in second-half stoppage time, looping a header from Smith’s cross into the far corner, to leave Nuno Espírito Santo sick. Only Erling Haaland and Mohamed Salah have scored more top-flight goals than Solanke this season. Has Nuno, who last managed in Saudi Arabia, really missed the Premier League?
At least the sense of injustice gave Forest something of a siege mentality. The first half was overshadowed by Boly’s sending-off and the decision to let Smith off the hook despite appearing to have committed a handball in the box minutes later. Harry Toffolo’s cross struck Smith’s left arm but, despite both the Bournemouth defender’s feet being inside the box, the VAR, Michael Salisbury, concluded it was unclear whether Smith’s left arm was inside the area. As with Newcastle’s winner against Arsenal in November, which prompted Mikel Arteta’s attack on refereeing standards, it is unlikely to end here, with Forest’s hierarchy furious.
The 51 or so first-half minutes were in effect a write-off and by the time Jones and his assistants, Wade Smith and Mat Wilkes, headed down the tunnel, flanked by police and stewards, it was hard to recall anything beyond those controversies. The game descended into a spiky affair, four v three, and that was just in the technical areas. Privately, Jones’s call to show Boly a second yellow, a decision it is impossible for VAR to overturn, would have left most officials squirming. There remain too many holes in the laws. Jones felt the wrath of fans but, in a different world, he could have been helped.
Andoni Iraola was also booked for gesturing for Boly to be cautioned, after the fourth official, Andy Madley, spied the Bournemouth head coach’s theatrics. Iraola will serve a one-match touchline ban against Fulham on Boxing Day after picking up his third booking of the season but it was Nuno who was left apoplectic.
“It was a very bad decision, a decision that totally changed the game,” the Portuguese said. “It is more the frustration of knowing the approach of the referee is a bad one and the law says you cannot reverse the decision because it is two yellow cards. It is something they have to look at because it doesn’t make sense. Our fans deserve better decisions; they come here to see football and suddenly they see something which really changes the game.”
Anthony Elanga gave Forest the lead two minutes into the second half with a cool first-time finish after being released by Chris Wood, who dispossessed the Bournemouth substitute Alex Scott. But Bournemouth hit back four minutes later through Solanke, the in-form Bournemouth striker beating Murillo in the air and sending a header spinning over Matt Turner in the Forest goal.
Neco Williams made a magnificent block to prevent Antoine Semenyo nudging Bournemouth in front but Solanke soon scored after Forest failed to clear a corner. Forest were not dead, however, and Wood headed in at a Forest corner, via a Dango Ouattara deflection, to ensure a grandstand finish. Solanke again rose to the fore, looping in another header.
Nuno made an understated entrance, tapping the crest on his club tracksuit and applauding Forest fans on all sides, but all eyes were on the officials as the pitch emptied at full time. To make matters worse, all of the bottom three picked up points – Luton and Burnley each winning, while Sheffield United drew on Friday – to leave Forest only two points above the relegation zone. Luton also have a game in hand. “If we focus on that, we could get scared,” Nuno said. “We have to focus on the things we have to do to improve.”
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