Michael O’Neill expressed his sympathy for Nottingham Forest, after masterminding a 4-1 win to leave Sabri Lamouchi and his players shell-shocked.
The Stoke City boss could scarcely believe what he saw in the final 20 minutes of a dramatic evening at the City Ground, which saw Forest miss out on a place in the top six, despite spending much of the season in it.
A Danny Batth goal opener for the Potters was cancelled out when Tobias Figueiredo headed the host’s level, putting them back on course to secure sixth place.
Things began to unravel for Lamouchi’s men, though, with strikes from James McClean, Lee Gregory and a Nuno da Costa own goal sealing the most incredible of finishes.
“Forest left spaces and we were able to exploit that,” said O’Neill.
“I have sympathy for Forest missing out the way they did. It’s hugely disappointing for them but we have to look after ourselves and we take a lot from this game.
“We played against a very good team, a team that’s been in the play-off positions for most of the season and it gives us something to build on going forward into next season.
“It was a good performance. We were in for a difficult game coming here. Forest had a lot at stake and a lot to play for. I thought we played well in the first half and deserved to be ahead.
“We had to defend at times as we knew we would do, you’re not going to come here and not have to defend.
“But I thought our reaction after they scored was terrific, really pleasing, because as I said before the game we’ve not won enough or gathered enough points away from home this season and that’s something we need to address going forward.”
