DISCOVER WHY DANIEL FARKE CALLED THE FOREST WIN "A TOP PERFORMANCE
Daniel Farke describes Leeds United's 3-1 win over Nottingham Forest as "massive" as they move nine points clear of the drop zone.
Leeds boss Daniel Farke called it a “massive win” after his team beat Nottingham Forest 3-1 at Elland Road. That puts Leeds nine points clear of the relegation zone—not a bad place to be at this point in the season.
Jayden Bogle got his first Premier League goal for Leeds, and Noah Okafor added another just a few minutes later in the first half. Suddenly, Leeds had control of the game. Early in the second half, Dominic Calvert-Lewin bagged his tenth league goal of the season. Forest’s new signing, Lorenzo Lucca, did manage a late header, but it was just a consolation. Forest stays just above the drop—still not safe.
After the match, Farke didn’t try to hide his pride. “Honestly, I’m really proud. This was a tough one for us, especially after getting hammered 4-0 by Arsenal last time out. Sure, it was Arsenal, but losing always knocks your confidence a bit. It’s never easy to bounce back, and that made today tricky.
Plus, you could feel there was more at stake than just three points. Some games matter a bit more, you know? Today was one of them. And for the lads to step up like this, to play with that much energy and control—it was a top performance.
Wins like this lift everyone. The confidence, the belief, the spirit in the group—it was all there today. That’s why it’s such a huge win.”
Farke had special praise for Ilia Gruev and Noah Okafor. “Ilia looked so sharp in training this week. He’s always reliable, always gives you a solid game, but today—two assists, loads of key passes—he was just brilliant.
And Noah, that was one of his best games for us. He can take players on, he can score, and he can set things up. We know what he can do, but today he also worked so hard off the ball, winning it back. That made a big difference.”
On the other side, Forest boss Sean Dyche thought his team were just starting to get into the game when Leeds struck with those quick goals. Still, he admitted Leeds deserved the win.
“We expected them to come out fast, and I thought we handled it pretty well at first,” Dyche said. “We were having our best spell, which is why it’s so frustrating to let in that first goal—especially when we were finally putting them under pressure.
That third goal really finished us. At 2-0, you think maybe you can get one back and change the game, but then we let in another poor goal at the back.
If there’s anything positive to take, it’s that we kept fighting right to the end.”
SUNDERLAND BOSS REGIS LE BRIS LABELS ARSENAL "BEST IN EUROPE" FOLLOWING 3-0 EMIRATES DEFEAT
Sunderland’s Regis Le Bris labelled Arsenal the "best team in Europe" after a 3-0 defeat left the Gunners nine points clear.
Sunderland manager Regis Le Bris didn’t hold back after his team’s 3-0 loss at Arsenal on Saturday. He called Arsenal “the best team in Europe” and sounded honestly impressed by what he’d just seen at the Emirates.
Mikel Arteta’s squad keeps stretching their lead at the top of the Premier League—now nine points clear. Martin Zubimendi opened the scoring, and then Viktor Gyokeres came off the bench in the second half to add two more. Arsenal’s grip on the game was obvious. Sunderland barely managed three shots on target all day.
After the match, Le Bris admitted Arsenal looked “really impressive” and said Arteta’s got the depth he needs to lift the Premier League trophy. “We’re still a newly promoted side, facing probably the best team in Europe right now,” he said. “They’ve built this group over years. We’re not at that level yet, but we have to learn from games like this. You need strong foundations and attention to detail if you want to grow.”
He couldn’t stop talking about Arsenal’s squad: “They’re so organised, so tough to break down, and even their bench is packed with threats. That kind of depth matters, especially when you’ve got wingers and creative players who can change a game late on. When everyone’s tired, those guys really make the difference. Arsenal showed that today—they were just outstanding.”
When someone asked if Arsenal has what it takes to win the league, Le Bris didn’t hesitate. “Yeah, I think so,” he said.
He also pointed out how much trouble Arsenal’s pressing game gave Sunderland. “The score says it all. They didn’t let up. We handed them a few chances with turnovers, and their pressing punished us every time,” Le Bris said.
“They’re top of the league, top of the Champions League group—they’ve got quality everywhere. You feel their experience, their class. Still, at the end of the day, the score’s the score, and we have to learn from it.”
He repeated that Arsenal’s experience really shows. “They’ve spent years building this. Every part of their game looks well-rounded. We knew coming here that it would come down to the little things, and today, those key moments went their way.”
Le Bris sounded a bit frustrated, too. “We knew their pressing would be fierce. We lost five or six balls—that’s just too many against a team like this. The first two goals came straight from those mistakes.”
And trying to break down Arsenal’s defence? He just shook his head. “In the final third, they’re organised, the defenders are solid. Breaking them down is really tough.”
DAVID MOYES HAILS "TERRIFIC" DEWSBURY-HALL AFTER VITAL CRAVEN COTTAGE VICTORY
Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall redeemed his Brighton miss with a vital goal in Everton's 2-1 win at Fulham, keeping his promise to Moyes.
Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall made good on a promise he’d given David Moyes during the week, and his goal helped Everton pull off a comeback win at Fulham.
Last weekend at Brighton, Dewsbury-Hall blew a golden chance—he shot straight at Bart Verbruggen after Thierno Barry set him up perfectly. He told Moyes afterwards that he wouldn’t let it happen again.
At Craven Cottage, he kept his word. This time, when the ball fell to him in the box, he buried it and gave Everton the spark they needed for another solid win on the road.
Everton actually fell behind early. Vitalii Mykolenko’s own goal put Fulham up after Jordan Pickford managed to stop Raul Jimenez’s shot, only for the rebound to bounce off Mykolenko and in. That opened the door for a barrage from Fulham—Pickford had to make a couple of big saves, and both Emile Smith Rowe and Samuel Chukwueze clipped the woodwork. But Everton weathered it. Dewsbury-Hall led the charge, and his corner forced Bernd Leno into a mistake that ended up as Everton’s match-winner. They left with a 2-1 victory.
Dewsbury-Hall’s performance stood out—he’d looked sharp before hurting his hamstring at Chelsea back in December, and he’s only just getting back to his best. Moyes praised him after the game: “He’s brought something different to us. He’s been terrific. He’s nearly back to full fitness. He got about 90 minutes today, and he’s still working his way back from that hamstring injury at Stamford Bridge. He missed that big chance at Brighton, and today’s goal was almost a carbon copy. He told me this week, ‘If I get another one like that, I won’t miss it.’ And he didn’t.”
Because of a touchline ban from last week’s yellow card at Brighton, Moyes had to watch from the stands. Afterwards, he admitted Fulham edged the first half but didn’t think the gap was huge.
“I didn’t think we played well, but I don’t think we were terrible either,” he said. “We kept the ball alright for the first ten minutes, then made a couple of mistakes. The goal was just unlucky. Pickford made a great save; it bounces off Myko, what can you do?
“Fulham probably shaded the first half, but it wasn’t by much. We did well to keep it 1-0 at the break. Second half, I thought we were much better.”