Nottingham Forest vs Leeds United: Glasner's Premier League Debut Ends in Defeat
Oliver Glasner’s Nottingham Forest tenure began with a sting in the tail, as Leeds United snatched a late 1-0 win at the City Ground to spoil the Austrian’s Premier League bow.
Anton Stach, ice-cool and ruthless from 20 yards, bent a free-kick over the wall and inside Matz Sels’ near post in the 88th minute to tear up what had looked like a cagey opening-day draw.
Glasner’s new era, same old tension
Forest’s fifth manager in under a year walked out to optimism and curiosity after replacing Vitor Pereira, who had been dismissed despite hauling the club away from relegation danger last season. This, though, was no grand unveiling full of flowing football and chances. It was tight, tactical, and decided by one of the league’s dead-ball specialists.
Set-pieces framed the entire afternoon. Corners, free-kicks, long throws – they were where the jeopardy lived.
Leeds thought they had struck first just before the half-hour. Harry Wilson, eager to stamp his mark on his debut, arrived perfectly to sweep in Jayden Bogle’s low cross. The away end erupted. The flag went up. Offside. Forest breathed again.
That scare jolted the hosts. As half-time loomed, they finally pinned Leeds back. From a scruffy scramble in the box, centre-back Jair Cunha rose and crashed a header against the post, the ball ricocheting away with Illan Meslier’s replacement, James Trafford, beaten.
Forest went down the tunnel frustrated but encouraged. They had survived, then almost struck. Glasner had something to work with.
Leeds’ £80m rebuild shows its teeth
Daniel Farke had demanded help after steering Leeds to safety last season, eight points clear of the drop. The board answered with an £80m outlay and a clear message: this team should not be hovering near trouble again.
Trafford, Wilson and Tarik Muharemovic all started at the City Ground and each had their moment.
Trafford, signed for a record fee for a British goalkeeper, justified the outlay inside 17 minutes, springing to his left to claw away a firm Igor Jesus effort. It was the kind of save that changes the mood of a debut and steadies a new back line.
Wilson, fresh from 10 goals and seven assists for Fulham last term, buzzed around the right flank, always looking to dart in behind. When Bogle fizzed another low ball across the box, Wilson got there first again – but this time his touch only underlined his regret. Dominic Calvert-Lewin lurked onside behind him, better placed, unmarked. The chance died.
Muharemovic, meanwhile, grew into the contest. On 70 minutes, he thundered a header goalwards, forcing Sels into his first serious save of the afternoon. It was a warning that Leeds were beginning to lean forward.
Forest push, Leeds punish
Forest tried to seize control after the break. Igor Jesus attacked an Ola Aina cross 10 minutes into the second half but could only glance his header wide. The crowd roared their approval of the intent, yet clear-cut chances stayed rare.
The game tightened, the tension rose, and every free-kick started to feel like a penalty in disguise.
Leeds slowly edged higher. Muharemovic’s header tested Sels. The visitors’ set-pieces grew sharper, their delivery more menacing. Forest, who had looked the stronger side at the end of the first half, began to retreat a step at a time.
Then came the moment that mattered.
Stach drew a foul from Nikola Milenkovic on the edge of the box. The German, already with a reputation as one of the division’s deadliest from distance, placed the ball, took his run-up and wrapped his right foot around it. The shot arced over the Forest wall, dipped, and slid just beyond Sels’ outstretched hand at the near post.
Leeds’ bench exploded. Glasner stared out at a script he did not write.
The numbers underline Stach’s threat. Since the start of last season, no player has scored more from direct free-kicks than his four. His tally of five goals from outside the box in that period is unmatched. Everyone in the stadium knew what was coming. Stopping it was another matter entirely.
Same venue, new stakes
The whistle went with Forest still chasing, their new manager already feeling the brutal margins of this league. A solid draw had been in their grasp. One lapse, one elite strike, and it was gone.
For Leeds, the opening-day win does more than put three points on the board. It validates their summer spend and hints at a side with the tools to look up the table rather than down.
These two will go again at the City Ground on Tuesday, 25 August, in the Carabao Cup second round. Same pitch, same managers, many of the same players.
Forest will want revenge. Leeds will want proof that this was not just a perfect free-kick on a perfect day, but the start of something bigger.
