Crystal Palace 0-0 Nottingham Forest: Stalemate in landmark game for Hodgson

Crystal Palace settled for a goalless draw against Nottingham Forest in Roy Hodgson’s 400th game as a Premier League manager.

Forest centre-back Murillo was denied by Sam Johnstone after a brilliant run, while Jean-Philippe Mateta dragged Palace’s best chance wide.

The draw leaves Palace ninth and Forest 13th, eight and five points clear of the relegation zone respectively at this early stage.

Hodgson, now 76, first managed in the Premier League with Blackburn in 1997, having previously coached teams including Inter Milan, Switzerland, Malmo and Bristol City.

He told BBC Match of the Day: “I was 50 when I came back and managed my first Premier League game. I’d been working then for well over 20 years so I suppose if I can be proud of anything, I’ve done it at what would have been the tail end of many people’s careers so I’m really happy with that.

“The only sad thing is that I don’t get any calmer or more relaxed on the bench. I don’t feel the tension less, I don’t suffer less when they have got three or four corners in the final minutes of the game.

“Unfortunately, it’s bad for any young coaches watching this, the 400 games hasn’t helped me one bit in that respect.”

Hodgson is the eighth manager to reach 400 games in the Premier League. Of those long-serving bosses, only Sam Allardyce finished on the losing side in the landmark match.

Before kick-off on Saturday there was a minute’s applause in memory of 15-year-old Elianne Andam, who was stabbed to death in Croydon in late September.

Palace fans also held up a banner bearing the message “Rest in peace Elianne. Your light shines on”.

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No birthday fireworks for Hodgson

Forest boss Steve Cooper encouraged his side ahead of the game to “thrive in the atmosphere” typically generated at Selhurst Park and they dominated the opening period.

Gibbs-White, who returned to the starting XI after being on the bench against Brentford last Sunday, made a lovely run in behind the Palace defence before looping his shot from a classy long-range Murillo pass over Johnstone.

Rather than nestle in the net, though, the ball came back off the right post and into the goalkeeper’s hands.

Cooper’s side continued to press without creating many chances, with Palace’s first touch in the Forest box coming when Jordan Ayew volleyed over in the 33rd minute.

It was perhaps not surprising that Palace, who were without the injured Eberechi Eze and a host of other first-choice options, lacked spark in the first half, with Hodgson’s side having scored only once in the opening period in the league this season.

They improved after the break but struggled to penetrate an organised Forest defence, with a tame Mateta header and Ayew strike the only times goalkeeper Matt Turner was called upon.

That was despite Forest losing captain and right-back Serge Aurier to a groin injury at half-time, with his replacement Gonzalo Montiel having an acrobatic effort sliced over the Palace bar by defender Joachim Andersen.

Nicolas Dominguez saw a late curling effort tipped away by Johnstone, as Forest, who have now kept as many away clean sheets in the league as they did in all of last season – two – looked the more likely to take the three points.

Speaking to BBC Match of the Day, Cooper said: “I guess that is the sign of the progress we are making that we come to a side like Crystal Palace and we are disappointed just getting a point.

“We had the real chances of the game, well created chances as well. We could have nicked it at the end.

“It is a clean sheet away from home and we would have done anything for results and performances like that last season.

“There are some good signs in the team and there have been for a few weeks now.”