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“You’ll never sing that, champions of Europe,” echoed through the stadium as Nottingham Forest followers celebrated another success against Malmö. A great deal has occurred since Trevor Francis’s winning header clinched the European Cup back in 1979, but Forest still cherish those memories. Similarly, significant shifts have taken place in the five weeks since the manager took charge, with Forest looking refreshed and securing a comfortable win thanks to goals from Arnaud Kalimuendo, Ryan Yates, and Milenkovic, boosting their prospects of progressing in the Europa League.

Building Steam with Third Consecutive Victory

For Forest, this result – against a Swedish side that had not played for nearly a month after ending sixth in their home competition – marked a third consecutive triumph across every tournament and added to the positive energy generated from last weekend’s success at Liverpool. While this fixture was a re-run of Forest’s European Cup success in spirit, the encounter itself was devoid of any significant jeopardy or nerves.

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

Forest fully embraced the history, paying tribute to the heroes of that era by providing them, along with their visiting counterparts, the red-carpet treatment. 13 members of the Malmö's squad from then were also present. Both teams shared a meal together before the match. Frank Clark, Colin Barrett and their teammates were given a tumultuous reception when they assembled on the field a quarter of an hour before kick-off, and a characteristically superb display was shown in the home stand.

Recalling the Past

“30th May 1979, John Robertson crossed it in from the left,” read one part of a large banner, in block capitals. While nobody required a reminder of what ensued, the remaining section was revealed as the squads came out from the dressing rooms. “There is Francis,” it continued. A second brilliant display showed Clough observing events beside his right-hand man Peter Taylor on a bench at the Munich stadium.

Dominance from the Start

So, the hosts had soaked up those beautiful recollections, but what about the showing on the night? It was strong, too. They were in complete control from the moment Kalimuendo whistled an effort wide inside the opening moments and established a 2-0 advantage by the half-time interval. Domínguez sent an early header wide and then Abbott, on his first European start, tried his luck.

It felt fitting that Yates, who joined the club as an eight-year-old, made the first dent in the Malmö defence led by their own academy product captain, Jansson, previously of Leeds United and Brentford FC. The home centre-back Milenkovic saw a cross cannon off a defender and into the path of Yates, who finished right-footed from just inside the box to register his maiden strike since last March.

Second Strike Confirms Control

The scorer was involved in the team's next goal on the brink of the interval, as well, his free header parried by the goalkeeper Ellborg but Kalimuendo on hand to tap in the loose ball from close range. James McAtee, the midfielder given a rare start and only his second outing since September, was the spark, lofting a delicious ball towards Yates at the far post.

A minute earlier, Callum Hudson-Odoi low effort was turned wide off the defender Rösler, the son of former Man City striker Uwe, and an free the defender also earlier had a strong header smartly saved by Ellborg, who returned in place of the ex- Aston Villa goalie Olsen.

Opponent's Struggles

This was the Swedish side's first match since the domestic league ended on November 9th, and they struggled to match Forest’s energy. Forest made it 3-0 when Milenkovic applied the finishing touch after his defensive colleague Murillo kept alive a corner. The captain had a volley blocked, but the Serbia centre-back Milenkovic feasted on the leftovers.

The home side then went for the jugular, with the winger dinking a effort on to the crossbar before Ibrahim Sangaré sent an optimistic shot wide from 30 yards. It was that kind of nights. Dyche, mindful of the upcoming domestic fixture here against Brighton, implemented multiple alterations from the side that surprised the Reds at their ground last weekend, when they additionally netted three goals, though he called on Elliot Anderson, Dan Ndoye and further fresh legs midway through the final period.

Smooth Evening for Forest

It turned out to be a hiccup-free night for Nottingham Forest. Dyche could take off Murillo with the match long since sewn up and subsequently brought on 19-year-old full-back Sinclair for his first-team debut. Dyche talked about the Forest old guard providing “valuable insights” at weekly get-togethers and, nearly fifty years on, the current crop demonstrated they are capable of a few nuggets of excitement, too.