Millwall vs Nottingham Forest. Sky Bet Championship.
The Den.
Report and highlights from the Sky Bet Championship clash between Millwall and Nottingham Forest at The Den as teenager Alex Mighten cancelled out Tom Bradshaw's opener with his first professional goal
Saturday 19 December 2020 19:51, UK
Teenager Alex Mighten scored his first senior goal as Nottingham Forest held out for a 1-1 draw at Millwall that took them a point clear of the Championship relegation zone.
In a match largely short of quality, both goals came in the early stages of the second half before the two teams reverted to cancelling each other out.
Given Forest's poor away record this season - just four points gained on the road prior to their visit to The Den - it was a better result for them than the Lions, whose habit of drawing too often again left them frustrated.
Forest defender Loic Mbe Soh headed an early free-kick from Cafu against a post, although the referee had already blown for a foul.
It was far from the only time Oliver Langford's whistle was heard in the first 20 minutes, during which two players from each side were booked, with the official clearly looking to stamp down his authority.
However, this approach was preventing the match from gaining any type of flow and the ball was rarely able to get out of the midfield area.
The regular free-kicks did at least lead to some shooting opportunities, but Jed Wallace could only fire straight at Forest goalkeeper Brice Samba, while Sammy Ameobi sent a wild effort high and wide.
Ryan Leonard tried his luck from 25 yards shortly before half-time but his strike flew harmlessly over the crossbar.
The early stages of the second half were a total contrast to the first 45 minutes, as Millwall broke the deadlock within two minutes of the restart.
Iceland international Jon Dadi Bodvarsson drove down the left with an excellent run before his cutback was steered into the net by Tom Bradshaw.
However, their lead last just two minutes as a long ball over the top from Mbe Soh led to Mighten's big moment, as the 18-year-old finished well into the bottom corner.
The Lions should have restored their lead in the 52nd minute when Mason Bennett found Wallace in space inside the area but the hosts' top scorer dragged his shot wide.
Things settled down again after that flurry of action and it was Millwall who applied most of the pressure, with Bennett firing way off target after Bradshaw miscontrolled.
Openings were few for the Lions, but Leonard almost snatched victory for them four minutes into stoppage time when his half-volley from outside the box was tipped over by Samba.
Millwall's Gary Rowett: "I thought we performed pretty well, on the whole. Jon Dadi has shown he's growing in confidence with a fabulous run for the goal and you felt going 1-0 up so early in the second half was a massive moment in a tight game.
"You know Forest have then got to come out and lose their shape and that would give us other opportunities, but the one thing you don't want to do is make a poor mistake quickly afterwards. It's a poor goal for us to concede - one ball does our centre-halves and it's a gift to Forest, in my opinion."
Nottingham Forest's Chris Hughton: "It's brilliant for Mighten. Up until then it had been a difficult game for him - he hadn't really got into the spaces where he can show his qualities. He's had one-v-ones and he was up against a good full-back that got tight on him, so probably up until the goal he'd had a quiet game.
"But when you're a forward player, or a winger, it's about the moments that you can change something or make it happen."
