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Nottingham Forest were massively disappointing on Friday night in a 1-1 draw against Ipswich Town, in which Liam Delap was a standout for all the wrong reasons.
Oliver Glasner is quickly running out of games at Nottingham Forest to get into the win column. The performance against Ipswich Town was really promising, again, but again it didn’t translate to a victory. Forest had a 1-0 lead and should have scored more, but an individual error at the back saw the lead thrown away and with it the three points.
VAR controversy played a part as Ipswich could have gone down to 10 men. But ultimately Forest’s players didn’t do enough, failing to convert chances and then being sloppy at the back. Nikola Milenkovic will get the majority of flak for his role in Ipswich’s equaliser, but more concerning for Glasner will be Liam Delap.
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Forest held to a 1-1 draw with Ipswich 😬 Give us YOUR reaction in the comments! Controversial to say the least….
Signing Delap was always a risk after how poor he was for Chelsea, and seven games into his Forest career, concerns should be rife. Before the Ipswich game, Delap insisted he wasn’t worried about how this season was going. But that answer may have now changed.
Delap claimed more opponents’ shirts – Dara O’Shea’s – than he had shots on target against Ipswich, despite having a couple of really big chances in the box. Delap committed three fouls and just nine passes; it was a performance that saw him offer nothing.
Delap spent too much time wrestling opponents, failing to be a threat or give the defenders a tough time at all. The striker was spending too much of his time not in the box, while his teammates weren’t getting around him quickly enough, which saw the 23-year-old isolated
| Stat | Vs. Ipswich |
| Minutes | 89 |
| Expected goals | 0.44 |
| Shots | 3 (0 on target) |
| Big chances missed | 1 |
| Ground duels won | 2/8 |
| Fouls committed | 3 |
What is so frustrating about watching Delap is he seems to always initiate the contact, even when it isn’t necessary. Once in a duel, Delap only won two of eight against Ipswich.
On one occasion, he was through and had O’Shea beat in a leg race, only to concede a foul as he grabbed the defender and dragged him down, it is just incredibly naive striker play.
This will concern Glasner, as at a time when he needs goals desperately, his striker is among the most toothless in the division, and when he looks to his bench, he has a 34-year-old Chris Wood as his solitary option.
Glasner may have refused further signings in the summer, but we can’t see that happening again in January. This Forest side quite clearly needs investment and signings to compete, but unless a win comes soon, Glasner won’t be here to see it.