That’s the problem with the feeling of invincibility; can too quickly turn into pure arrogance.

Nottingham Forest He had good reason to be full of confidence coming into this game. They were (and still are) third in the Premier League standings. Third! Forest! We know it!

This 3-1 reality check is only a second loss of the season; For someone to seriously complain that they haven’t been able to come within a point of Manchester City would be silly first world problems in the extreme. Still… this was a reminder to Nuno Espirito Santo’s side about the importance of staying true to themselves and not letting their position fool them into thinking they are something they are not.

A game that started with a distinctive “we’re both happy with a draw, actually” energy that developed into something much more compelling. Forest’s first goal, provided by Murillo’s first goal for the club following a cross set piece by Anthony Elanga, went wide. Newcastle UnitedEdit needing to improve their game to find the tie.

And they needed to do that. Breaking down rebellious teams is not Newcastle’s forteand there haven’t been many more stubborn than Forest this season. Throughout the first half, Eddie Howe’s team once again gave the distinct impression of trying to fell a giant redwood tree with a bread knife.

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Murillo, in particular, was fantastic, as he has been virtually since arriving at the club. The centre-back has been a phenomenal acquisition for a club that previously had a bad reputation for its haphazard approach to its recruitment, and summer signing Nikola Milenkovic proved to be a perfect accompaniment. At the back of Forest fans’ minds there must be that nagging fear that the pair could simply be also strikingly good at their job.

But not even the strongest tree is ever infallible. Newcastle started the second half with renewed vigour, and once restored parity shortly after the break thanks to Alexander Isak (a shot that hit the post from a corner, the first time Newcastle had scored from a corner this season) , neither team was really happy with a point.

The visitors wanted to maintain their momentum and find a winner; Forest, having squandered the lead, were determined to win it back. Gone is the “stay solid and play counterattack” mentality; A slightly more adventurous spirit arrived and encouraged them to get more men forward.

That was his downfall. For all of Newcastle’s failings in the games they have dominated, they have proven to be an excellent counter-attacking team even against some of the Premier League’s toughest defenses this season.

The fact that Forest did not maintain their composure after conceding that equalizer from a set piece and simply stuck to their original game plan was pure arrogance on their part. Their collective decision to try to become something they simply are not played perfectly into the hands of the visitors.

Isak squandered an opening in the 67th minute by volleying Joe Willock’s cross wide when he really should have scored, but that was the biggest warning Newcastle were prepared to let Forest get away with.

A similar move from the edge of the Newcastle box towards the right wing five minutes later ended with Joelinton, who did his best Mo Salah impression by cutting inside a desperate, over-committed Elanga, before firing a hopeful left-footed shot across the ball and find the net at the far post.

That put Forest in an unfamiliar situation. Only twice before this season had they been behind at any point in a Premier League match: in the 2-2 draw against Brighton and in the one-goal defeat against Fulham.

In their desperation to rescue another point, Forest went crazy and lost control, increasingly prone to doing things outside their comfort zone: pressing even higher, pushing more men forward, trying to play through an opponent. The result, inevitably, was that substitute Harvey Barnes added another counter-attacking goal for Newcastle, putting the finishing touch on a move he helped start in his own half.

So in the end, another excellent day’s work for Newcastle, and a punishing warning for Forest not to get too carried away again in the future. Their start has been phenomenal and they are able to sustain it much further, but only if they remember how they got there in the first place.

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