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“Champions of Europe, you’ll never sing that,” was chanted around the City Ground as Nottingham Forest supporters celebrated another success against their Swedish opponents. A great deal has happened since Francis's decisive header clinched the European Cup in the year 1979, but the club continue to cherish those glorious moments. Equally, significant shifts have taken place in the weeks since Sean Dyche took charge, with Forest appearing refreshed and earning a comfortable win courtesy of goals from Arnaud Kalimuendo, Ryan Yates, and Nikola Milenkovic, boosting their hopes of advancing in the European competition.

Gaining Steam with Another Straight Victory

For Forest, this result – against a Malmö side that had not played for almost three weeks after ending in sixth place in their home competition – represented a third straight win across all competitions and further built on the momentum generated from last weekend’s success at Liverpool. While this match was a re-run of Forest’s European Cup success in name, the encounter itself was free of any real tension or jitters.

It proved to be an event filled with sentiment, an longed-for reunion and the third competitive meeting between the sides since the European Cup final over four decades past.

Forest fully embraced the heritage, paying tribute to the legends of 1979 by giving them, along with their visiting opponents, the VIP welcome. 13 members of the Malmö's squad from that time were additionally in attendance. Both teams enjoyed a meal together before the match. Frank Clark, Colin Barrett and company were given a tumultuous welcome when they gathered on the pitch a quarter of an hour before kick-off, and a typically superb tifo was shown in the home stand.

Remembering the Past

“May 30, 1979, Robertson crossed it in from the left flank,” read one part of a large banner, in capital letters. While nobody required a reminder of what happened next, the rest was revealed as the players emerged from the tunnel. “There is Francis,” it continued. Another brilliant display showed Brian Clough watching events beside his right-hand man Peter Taylor on a dugout at the Munich stadium.

Control from the Outset

So, Forest had soaked up those wonderful recollections, but what about the showing on the evening? It was pretty good, as well. They were in complete control from the moment the forward fired an effort wide inside the opening moments and established a 2-0 lead by the break. Nicolás Domínguez sent an early header off target and then Abbott, on his maiden European start, had a go.

It seemed appropriate that Ryan Yates, who came to Forest as an eight-year-old, made the first dent in the Malmö defense led by their own academy product captain, Jansson, formerly of Leeds United and Brentford. The Forest centre-back Nikola Milenkovic saw a delivery cannon off a defender and into the path of the midfielder, who finished right-footed from just inside the box to register his first goal since March.

Another Strike Confirms Control

The scorer was implicated in the team's next goal on the verge of half-time, as well, his free header parried by the shot-stopper Ellborg but the alert forward on hand to convert the loose ball from point-blank range. McAtee, the playmaker given a rare start and just his second outing since the autumn, was the spark, chipping a perfect ball towards his teammate at the far post.

A minute earlier, Hudson-Odoi’s driven shot was turned wide off Malmö back Rösler, son of former Man City striker Uwe Rösler, and an free Milenkovic had earlier had a strong header smartly repelled by Ellborg, who returned in place of the former Aston Villa goalkeeper Robin Olsen.

Malmö’s Struggles

This was Malmö’s initial game since the Swedish Allsvenskan ended on 9 November, and they found it hard to match Forest’s intensity. The Reds extended the lead to three when Milenkovic scored after his centre-back partner Murillo kept alive a set-piece. The captain had a volley stopped, but the Serbian defender Milenkovic feasted on the rebound.

Forest then pushed for more, with the winger dinking a effort on to the bar before Ibrahim Sangaré sent an ambitious shot wide from distance. It was one of those evenings. The manager, mindful of Sunday’s league game here against Brighton & Hove Albion, implemented seven changes from the team that surprised Liverpool at Anfield recently, when they additionally netted three times, though he introduced substitutes and Igor Jesus during the second half.

Smooth Night for Forest

It turned out to be a hiccup-free evening for Forest. Dyche could take off Murillo with the match long since sewn up and later introduced teenage full-back Sinclair for his senior bow. He discussed the club legends supplying “valuable insights” at regular meetings and, nearly fifty years on, the present squad demonstrated they are capable of producing of thrills, too.