Oliver Glasner stood in the centre circle after the final whistle, applauding a quickly emptying City Ground — a gesture that felt almost apologetic after his first Premier League match in charge of Nottingham Forest ended in a late loss to Leeds.
In stark contrast, Leeds boss Daniel Farke celebrated with the travelling supporters after Anton Stach’s free-kick slipped past Matz Sels with two minutes remaining.
Forest were always going to be a work in progress and badly need stability after using four managers last season. Glasner stressed there is no instant fix, saying it will take time to implement his ideas, but he was encouraged by the team’s work rate.
The previous meeting with Leeds, a bleak Friday night in February at Elland Road, came just before the end of Sean Dyche’s 114-day tenure. A 3-1 defeat and dressing-room unrest preceded his dismissal days later, following a goalless draw with Wolves.
Glasner wasn’t Dyche’s immediate successor. Vitor Pereira kept Forest up and reached the Europa League semi-finals before being sacked in June to make way for the former Crystal Palace manager.
The optimism around Glasner’s appointment remains despite an underwhelming defeat, and Forest produced enough to argue they could have taken all three points. They fashioned the clearer chances — Igor Jesus headed a fine opportunity wide after the break and Nikola Milenkovic struck the post — and the intent to use width through the wing-backs was evident.
However, with no new signings in the starting XI, the hosts looked a touch stale, and the atmosphere never really ignited. After 13 arrivals last summer — and 21 in 2022 — the line-up felt unusually familiar. Eight of the starters also began last season’s opener under Nuno Espirito Santo against Brentford.
Summer recruits Ousmane Diomande and Xaver Schlager were introduced with 17 minutes left, but it didn’t feel like the start of a new era. If anything, the squad looks lighter following Elliot Anderson’s £116m move to Manchester City, and there’s a clear need for fresh additions.
Glasner said the priority now is building belief in the approach. No new players featured from the start, and several looked short of full fitness: Murillo only returned three weeks ago after a four-month layoff, and Chris Wood missed two friendlies with minor issues. There were, he insisted, plenty of positives — but this will take time.