Burton Albion were held to a goalless draw in the Championship despite the fact Nottingham Forest had to play the majority of the game with 10 men on Saturday afternoon. 

It was a first-half of few chances at the Pirelli Stadium with the biggest talking point being Eric Lichaj's sending off for a strong challenge on winger Martin Samuelsen. It was a contentious decision but one which you could understand as it was not the best tackle. 

Both sides had opportunities to open the scoring in the second-half but both ultimately had to settle for a point which is far more frustrating for Nigel Clough's side due to their position at the bottom of the table. 

Reds reduced to 10 as Lichaj dismissed  

The big team news prior to kick-off was that Forest boss Aitor Karanka opted to make six changes to his starting line-up following the 2-0 defeat to Hull City at The City Ground last weekend.

These changes included giving Tobias Figueiredo, Lee Tomlin, Joe Lolley and Ben Watson their full debuts for the Reds. 

The first chance of the game fell the way of the away side. Matty Cash drove down the left-hand side of the pitch before fizzing a cross in the direction of Lolley but he could only fire his shot straight at Stephen Bywater

The game took a huge turn with around 25 minutes played as referee Andy Davies decided to send off Forest left-back Lichaj for a strong challenge on Samuelsen.

Karanka was left fuming with the decision and was subsequently forced to bring on Ben Osborn in place of Lolley who was having a good game for the Reds.

It was Samuelsen who had one of Albion’s best chances with around 10 minutes left to play in the first-half. His header was inches away from finding the top corner as he met Jacob Davenport’s corner.

The home side visibly gained confidence from their numerical advantage in the latter stages of the half. The 20-year-old winger had an even better chance just moments later as the ball fell his way in the box but his effort was straight at Costel Pantilimon

Embed from Getty Images

Brewers fail to make the breakthrough

The hosts started the second-half in very similar fashion to how they finished the first. Darren Bent had a huge opportunity to score the opening goal but he could only fire Samuelsen's volleyed cross over the crossbar, much to the despair of the home crowd. 

Forest were not prepared to sit back and settle for a point in the second-half despite their numerical disadvantage. Ben Brereton capitalised on a Tom Naylor mistake around 10 minutes after the restart and charged into the area before he was taken down. However, the Reds' strong appeals for a penalty were waved away by the referee. 

The Brewers were creating a number of openings in the second-half and Samuelsen had another good chance with around 20 minutes left to play. He picked up the ball just outside the area before his stinging strike was palmed away by Pantilimon. This was shortly followed by another huge chance for Bent but his volley was superbly blocked by Danny Fox when the striker looked certain to open the scoring. 

Burton substitute Joe Sbarra came close to finding the elusive opening goal with less than 10  minutes left to play as his effort almost caught Pantilimon out but the Forest keeper was able to just about palm his effort wide.

This was shortly followed by one of Forest's best chances of the half. Tendayi Darikwa's long-range effort was just inches away from finding the top left-hand corner with Bywater beaten.

Despite a late onslaught from the hosts, both sides were ultimately forced to settle for a point. Clough would have been disappointed that his side could not find a winner considering they were playing against 10 men for the majority of the game and wasted a number of good opportunities. 

VAVEL Logo
About the author
Sam Straw
VAVEL Championship Editor. Journalism Student at The University of Sheffield. Nottingham Forest Season-Ticket Holder. Contributing to VAVEL UK since October 2016.