Nottingham Forest thumped Brighton & Hove Albion 7-0 helped by a hat trick from striker Chris Wood in their Premier League clash at the City Ground on Saturday in an emphatic bounce back from last week’s humbling 5-0 loss at Bournemouth.
Forest move to 47 points after 24 games to consolidate third spot as they chase Champions League qualification, while Brighton are ninth on 34.
Forest are now level with second-placed Arsenal, who host Manchester City in fourth on Sunday.
With 41 points, City is in fourth place in the league rankings, while Arsenal, in second place with 47 points, is six points behind leaders Liverpool, who still have a game to go.
The crowd chanted “We want eight!” as Forest continued to run wild after the half, and the 33-year-old Wood scored Elanga’s cross in the 64th.
Five minutes later, the New Zealand international completed his hat trick with a penalty, which was given after Tariq Lamptey had bundled Gibbs-White to the ground.
Neco Williams scored Forest’s sixth goal in the 89th, and Jota Silva added the cherry on top with a low strike in added time.
Brighton was under siege all afternoon as Forest attacked in waves, and a high-scoring match seemed certain.
With Dunk’s own goal, Forest scored in the first 15 minutes of a league game for the ninth time this season, second only to Tottenham Hotspur.
Forest also wasted a number of opportunities, including an early attempt that Wood almost deflected into the net and one that he fired over the bar, making Brighton’s awful day even worse.
