21/02/2026

SPORTS SATURDAY | FEB 21, 2026

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Perfect start for Pereira New Forest boss makes dream debut with Fenerbahce rout V ITOR PEREIRA made a dream start as Nottingham Forest boss with a 3-0 win over Fenerbahce in the first the goalline. Gibbs-White notched Forest’s third in the 50th minute, slotting home from Jesus’ pass.

SHORTS We played with real identity: Gibbs-White NOTTINGHAM FO R E S T captain Morgan Gibbs-White believes his side played with a “real identity” as new boss Vitor Pereira’s reign began with a 3-0 Europa League romp at Fenerbahce. Goals from Murillo, Igor Jesus and Gibbs-White made it a memorable night for Forest as life after Sean Dyche began in freescoring fashion. In perhaps a veiled dig at Dyche, Gibbs-White said on TNT Sports : “I felt like we had a real identity out there today. “I think his message to us is that we’re going to have a real identity of how we play and how we defend as a team. “I feel like him and his staff have brought a real positive energy into the group and we’ve all bought into what he wants straight away. “And I think that’s the most impor tant thing, buying into each other and understanding each other. “I think we’ve got a little bit of that already and I think we showed out there abundance today. “So, it’s about keeping learning off each other. Keep learning and then tak ing it game by game.” The victory means that, barring a disaster in next week’s second leg at the City Ground, Forest will earn a last 16 tie against Real Betis or Midtjylland. Pereira’s main brief in his new role is to ensure Forest retain their Premier League status and this performance should give confidence going into Sunday’s home game with Liverpool. “You want to enjoy every moment as a player,” Gibbs-White added. “It can be difficult as footballer to enjoy moments because of how quick the games come up. We can enjoy it and then prepare for Liverpool at the week end. “We have been going through a dif ficult time, confidence is the main thing and tonight will boost confi dence. We just have to stay together and be the most complete team.” Eagles must learn from draw, says Henderson C R Y S TAL PALACE captain Dean Henderson could offer “no excuses” after the first leg of their Conference League knockout phase playoff ended in a 1-1 stalemate at Zrinjski Mostar. The disappointing draw dials up the pressure on Palace boss Oliver Glasner, whose slumping side host Wolves on Sunday, then the reverse European fix ture next Friday at Selhurst Park. “It’s always difficult coming to places like this,” Henderson told TNT . “Sometimes you get a bit agitated, you want to go and get the next goal, and obviously with the pitch today, no excuses but playing balls into the pock ets when it’s bobbling, then they can break us, obviously. “That was difficult tonight but we’ve got to learn from it, we’ve got to move on. It will be a different game next week, and we’ve just got to make sure we’re prepared for that.” On paper, they look like the team most equipped to win the Conference League but their recent form on the pitch is not good. “It’s not going to be easy,” added Henderson, reflecting on next week’s task. “We can’t just turn up and expect to win three, four-nil, simple as that. We’ve got to learn from it.”

In Glasgow, Celtic goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel made a pair of costly mistakes to leave O’Neill with few fond memories of his landmark 1,000th match. The 73-year-old, who led Celtic to seven trophies from 2000 to 2005, was beaten for just the second time in 19 games over two stints as interim boss this season. Stuttgart went in front after 15 minutes with a goal gift-wrapped by Schmeichel. His weak clearance was worked into Bilal El Khannouss, whose tame shot should have been saved but somehow eluded the hapless Dane. Celtic were presented with an equally farcical equaliser in the 21st minute. Stuttgart ‘keeper Alexander Nuebel’s woeful pass put Atakan Karazor in trouble and his panicked ball hit Benjamin Nygren, who tapped into the empty net. El Khannouss, on loan from Leicester, restored Stuttgart’s advantage with a close-range header in the 28th minute. Schmeichel’s miserable evening got even worse in the 57th minute when Jamie Leweling’s strike from the edge of the area squirmed past his attempted save. Tiago Tomas netted in stoppage-time to add to O’Neill’s misery. Celtic have not advanced from a knockout European tie since 2004 and Stuttgart’s first leg stroll leaves the Scottish champions facing a mammoth task to end that dismal run. “It’s a tough evening for us. We were masters of our own downfall in many respects, conceded some poor goals,” O’Neill said. “I will think about all sorts of things, but Kasper has done really well since I’ve arrived at the club.” Criticising a fan protest against Celtic’s owners that disrupted the opening minute of the game, O’Neill added: “Anyone who thinks that is a good idea needs their head examined.” – AFP at the start of the second half. After 55 minutes, Adam Wharton gave the ball away in midfield and the hosts pounced. Leo Mikic found Karlo Abramovic galloping through the inside-right channel and the attacker drilled a low shot home. As Palace faltered, Abramovic almost wriggled through for a sec ond. Wharton smashed a shot against the Zrinjski bar but Palace had an 84th-minute scare when the video officials told referee Manfredas Lukjancukas to look at the pitchside video to check for a potential penalty for handball by Palace defender Daniel Munoz. Lukjancukas disagreed and con cluded that Munoz had been fouled into touching the ball.

leg of the Europa League playoffs, while Stuttgart thrashed Celtic 4-1 to ruin Martin O’Neill’s 1,000th match as a manager on Thursday. Pereira became Forest’s fourth boss this season after agreeing an 18 month deal to replace the sacked Sean Dyche on Sunday. He made an instant impact as the Premier League strugglers powered to an impressive victory in Istanbul thanks to goals from Murillo, Igor Jesus and Morgan Gibbs-White Forest’s dominant display puts them in pole position to finish the job in the second leg at the City Ground on February 26. “I realised before I came that the players have a lot of quality. They need results but they need to enjoy the game,” Pereira said. “I asked them to express themselves on the pitch. They did it. It was a very good result.” Perched perilously just three points above the Premier League relegation zone, Forest’s main aim is to avoid dropping into the Championship. But extending their first European campaign since 1995-96 would be a notable feat for a club starved of continental success since the Brian Clough era. Pereira had been out of work since being sacked by Wolves in November after a dismal start to this season. Managing Forest is hardly a guarantee of job security, however after Dyche, Ange Postecoglou and Nuno Espirito Santo were all axed by volatile owner Evangelos Marinakis this term. Murillo’s return to the starting line-up proved an inspired move by Pereira as the Brazilian centre-back opened the scoring in the 21st minute. Murillo held off two challenges before lashing a superb low strike past Ederson into the far corner from 25 yards. Forest struck again in the 43rd minute. Gibbs-White flicked on Elliot Anderson’s corner and Jesus pounced to head in from virtually on C R Y S TAL PALACE could not break free of their recent struggles as they wobbled away to Zrinjski Mostar and drew their Conference League game 1-1 yesterday. “I’m a little disappointed because after controlling the game we gave away the momentum too easily through our own mistakes,” said Palace coach Oliver Glasner. The Londoners dominated the first half, with Ismaila Sarr putting the ball in the net after 11 minutes but the goal was disallowed for offside. Palace took the lead a minute before the break when Sarr curled a shot into the far corner. But Palace, playing their first European knock-out game, had won only once since early December and their control of the game evaporated

Forest ‘s Ryan Yates (front) in action with Fenerbahce’s Caglar Soyuncu during the Europa League playoff match at Sukru Saracoglu Stadium yesterday. – REUTERSPIC

Shaky Palace continue to struggle

truly satisfied. “A result like this against a Premier League side, especially after a second half in which we should have converted several clear chances, is pleasing,” said the former Croatia centreback who played in the Premier League for Derby and West Ham. “We have to keep working, there’s no need to be afraid.” His players were also looking for ward to visiting south London. “We probably would have taken this result before kickoff and it’s a really big one for us,”said Mikic.“We’ll show heart again in the second leg. There will be a better pitch and an even better atmosphere, but we have every right to hope.” – AFP/The Independent

“It is level at half-time in the tie and we have to raise our level,” Glasner, who has already said he is leaving at the end of the season, told uefa.com . The Austrian boss suffered an additional blow in Bosnia, after Maxence Lacroix was forced off just after the hour with what Glasner shared might be muscle issue. Glasner told TNT : “It was the same against Burnley. We were controlling the game, having the lead, and then we just made two easy mistakes. “And then, even when you see the opportunities, we have always an overload, and we can’t defend the one we want. It’s what I said before the game, we have to get our defence sorted.” Igor Stimac, Zrinjski coach, was