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“Champions of Europe, you’ll never sing that,” echoed through the stadium as Nottingham Forest supporters reveled in another success against their Swedish opponents. A great deal has happened since Trevor Francis’s decisive header secured the continental trophy back in the year 1979, but Forest continue to hold dear those memories. Similarly, major shifts have taken place in the five weeks since Sean Dyche took charge, with Forest looking reinvigorated and earning a comfortable win thanks to goals from Kalimuendo, Ryan Yates, and Nikola Milenkovic, enhancing their prospects of progressing in the European competition.

Gaining Steam with Another Consecutive Victory

For Forest, this performance – against a Malmö side that had been inactive for nearly a month after finishing in sixth place in their domestic league – marked a third straight win across every tournament and added to the positive energy generated from the previous week's stunning victory at Liverpool. While this match was a re-run of the club's historic success in spirit, the encounter itself was free of any real tension or nerves.

This was an event filled with sentiment, an longed-for meeting and the third meeting between the sides since the showpiece event 46 years ago.

Forest fully embraced the history, honoring the legends of 1979 by giving them, along with their Malmö opponents, the red-carpet treatment. Thirteen members of the Malmö's team from then were additionally present. The two clubs shared a meal together before the match. Forest legends and company were given a tumultuous reception when they gathered on the field a quarter of an hour before kick-off, and a characteristically impressive tifo was unveiled in the home stand.

Recalling History

“30th May 1979, John Robertson delivered the ball from the left flank,” displayed half of a large tifo, in capital letters. While nobody required a reminder of what ensued, the rest was unfurled as the players emerged from the dressing rooms. “And there’s Francis,” it continued. Another brilliant tifo showed Brian Clough watching proceedings beside his right-hand man Taylor on a dugout at the Olympiastadion.

Dominance from the Start

So, the hosts had drunk in those wonderful memories, but what about the showing on the night? It was pretty good, too. They were in complete control from the moment the forward fired an attempt wide inside two minutes and established a 2-0 advantage by the half-time interval. Domínguez sent an early header off target and then Zach Abbott, on his maiden European start, had a go.

It seemed appropriate that Yates, who joined the club aged eight, made the initial breakthrough in the Malmö defense captained by their own academy product skipper, Pontus Jansson, previously of Leeds United and Brentford. The Forest centre-back Nikola Milenkovic saw a delivery deflect off a opponent and into the pathway of the midfielder, who finished right-footed from the edge of the box to score his maiden strike since last March.

Second Strike Seals Dominance

The scorer was implicated in Forest’s second goal on the verge of half-time, as well, his unmarked header saved by Malmö’s shot-stopper Ellborg but the alert forward poised to tap in the rebound from close range. McAtee, the playmaker given a seldom start and only his second outing since the autumn, was the catalyst, lofting a perfect ball towards his teammate at the back post.

A minute earlier, Callum Hudson-Odoi driven shot was turned wide off Malmö defender Colin Rösler, the son of former Manchester City forward Uwe Rösler, and an free the defender had previously had a strong header instinctively saved by the keeper, who was back in place of the former Aston Villa goalie Olsen.

Malmö’s Difficulties

This was the Swedish side's initial game since the domestic league concluded on 9 November, and they found it hard to match Forest’s energy. The Reds extended the lead to three when Milenkovic applied the finishing touch after his defensive colleague Murillo kept alive a set-piece. The captain had a shot stopped, but the Serbia centre-back Milenkovic feasted on the rebound.

The home side then pushed for more, with the winger dinking a right-foot shot on to the crossbar before Sangaré sent an optimistic effort wide from 30 yards. It was one of those nights. The manager, mindful of the upcoming domestic fixture here against Brighton, made multiple alterations from the team that stunned Liverpool at Anfield recently, when they also scored three times, though he introduced substitutes and Igor Jesus during the second half.

Smooth Evening for Forest

It turned out to be a hiccup-free evening for Nottingham Forest. Dyche could withdraw the defender with the game already sewn up and subsequently introduced 19-year-old full-back Sinclair for his senior bow. Dyche discussed the club legends providing “bits of gold” at weekly get-togethers and, almost five decades on, the present squad showed they are capable of a few nuggets of thrills, too.