It wasn’t pretty. It wasn’t, as Steve Cooper again conceded afterwards, “exactly what” he wants his team to be. But it was another small step.
And right now, small steps are important ones for Nottingham Forest. This one lifted them off the foot of the table - albeit having played a game more than Leicester City, who are in action on Thursday night.
There will come a time when the Reds need to take bigger strides; when they need to be braver and more adventurous going forward. But to get to that point, they had to make themselves harder to beat and more defensively sound.
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They needed to plug a leaky defence and give themselves something to build on. And a hard-fought goalless draw away to Brighton and Hove Albion added to the foundations which had been put in place in the previous two games.
Under pressure
The stats from the Amex Stadium tell the story of this match. Forest had just 30 percent of the possession and managed three efforts on goal - none of which were on target. Their opponents dominated the ball and had 19 shots.
Cooper’s side were on the back foot for long spells. They really had to dig in. But they did so as a team; looking more like a unit than they have done at other times this season.
Securing a clean-sheet on the road for the first time this term - and a second of the league campaign - should provide a significant confidence boost. It’s been a while coming, but the Reds have now shown they are capable of that, and that’s got to be a positive to take away.
They had to work hard for it. Dean Henderson had to make some good saves, including a big one in the final 10 minutes. Centre-back duo Steve Cook and Scott McKenna played well. And it took a mighty effort from those in front of them, too, as the visitors came under near-constant bombardment, with the ball continuously coming in their direction.
To cope with that kind of pressure for near-on 90 minutes was tough; and made for a difficult watch. But Forest did show they are willing to work hard for each other. There was a level of commitment and determination which was encouraging - and something they are going to need plenty of, particularly in their next two games, against Liverpool and Arsenal.
Going forward
Prior to facing Aston Villa, the Reds had shipped 18 goals in five matches. Something had to change. Switching to four at the back and three in midfield has tightened them up.
The next step is perhaps even more significant, though. Similar to Saturday’s defeat at Wolverhampton Wanderers, Cooper’s men offered very little by way of attacking threat on the south coast. That is the next issue to address.
In the first half, they barely strung a few passes together. Brennan Johnson played in the centre of a front three - with Jesse Lingard and Morgan Gibbs-White also tasked with helping to flood the centre of the pitch - but had next-to-no service. To say he was living off scraps is an understatement.
The visitors did get better in the second half - they registered their first shot in the 58th minute, through Johnson, and went on to have a second, courtesy of Ryan Yates not long after. But going forward remains an area where improvement needs to be made.
Part of that will be finding the right combination - something Cooper hasn’t quite hit upon yet. He went without an out-and-out striker in the starting XI against Brighton. The trio of Lingard, Gibbs-White and Johnson worked hard, but Lingard, in particular, has yet to make anything like the impact it was hoped he would.
"We are having to, and going to, defend more than last year, that's obvious,” said Cooper. “But when you get the ball, you have to pay great attention in looking after it, making the most of it and having a real desire to maximise your in-possession play.”
Battling performance
Few summed up the fighting qualities which were needed on Tuesday night more than Yates. He went in where it hurts on more than one occasion, coming away battered and bruised after constantly getting stuck in.
He might not be the most technically gifted - and his touch let him down in the first half, in particular - but his effort and commitment cannot be faulted. Forest are going to need that; they certainly did at the Amex.
Yates has arguably been the Reds’ best player in the last three games, having come back into the XI against Villa. He still has his critics (maybe he always will) but you can never accuse him of not giving everything he’s got for the cause.
Midfield is an area where Cooper is starting to have more options. Orel Mangala made his first start since returning from a hamstring injury, and will have benefitted from getting an hour on the pitch. Lewis O’Brien missed out as he is still recovering from illness.
Much like up front, if Forest are going to take the next step and be more progressive, it is about finding the set-up which works best. There needs to be a way of keeping the ball better and using it more wisely, giving the attacking players something to work with.
Top support
It’s impossible to look back on the game without singling out the fans who made the long trip on a Tuesday night and were incredible throughout. They didn’t stop singing from first minute until last, creating quite the noise.
Cooper made sure all the players went over to applaud the away end afterwards. There hadn’t been much for the travelling contingent to cheer, but they played their part in ensuring the Reds came away with something from the game; getting right behind them as they showed the necessary grit and determination to grind out the point.
Forest might still be finding their feet in the Premier League. But the backing they continue to receive is top drawer.
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