Demarai Gray's late equaliser from Brennan Johnson's opener ended the first meeting between Everton and Nottingham Forest since 1999.

Forest will be disappointed to have given up the lead late in the game, but will be happy to have finished game week three with four points after bringing in so many new players.

Everton will be relieved to have saved a point, but disappointed to have only earned one point so far this season.

Here are four things that we learned on Saturday.

Everton need a striker

Over the last four seasons, Richarlison and Dominic Calvert-Lewin have directly contributed to 100 Premier League goals for Everton. 

Due to Richarlison's transfer to Tottenham Hotspur and Calvert-Lewin's ongoing injury issues, Everton are currently reliant on their wingers to score goals.

Salomón Rondón, Everton's only fit striker, scored one goal and registered one assist in 20 league appearances last season. 

The 32-year-old started the game against Nottingham Forest but was substituted just before the hour mark.

Prior to being replaced by Dwight McNeil, the Venezuelan had 12 touches of the ball and one shot that whistled wide of the post. 

Rondon completed nine passes, did not win any ground duels, lost the ball once, and was called offside twice. His only other participation in the game was a successful aerial duel.

Everton looked dangerous throughout the game and forced saves from Dean Henderson, but without a natural finisher, the Toffees could be in for a long season. 

Gray's finish was natural, but Frank Lampard cannot rely on creative players to also be consistent goal scorers.

Alex Iwobi is excelling in midfield

Iwobi is a player who was bought to the club as a forward but is now impressing in midfield. 

The 26-year-old sat a little deeper than his midfield partner Tom Davies, but was able to find forward players in dangerous positions while working hard to protect the ball. 

Iwobi created the most chances (4) and completed the joint-most dribbles (2) in the game, while also recovering the ball 17 times and winning all of his tackles (2).

Throughout the game, the Nigeria international won five ground duels and finished with an overall passing accuracy of 80%. 

With Everton looking for a midfielder before the transfer window closes, Lampard may start to think that he already has the ideal partner for new signing Amadou Onana.

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Orel Mangala continues to impress

Nottingham has a new cult hero. Orel Mangala has already become a fan favourite, and he continued to shine against Everton

The midfielder's dynamism and intelligence aided Forest's offensive efforts while relieving defensive pressure.

Despite being subbed off shortly after halftime due to what his manager described as fatigue, Mangala stood out and was arguably the best player on the pitch in the first half. 

The midfielder completed 35 passes with 88% passing accuracy while setting up one big chance for Neco Williams, whose strike was saved by Jordan Pickford.

Soon after, Mangala's shot from the centre of the box was saved by Pickford in the bottom right corner. 

Defensively, the former VfB Stuttgart midfielder completed both tackles he attempted and recovered the ball eight times. He won three ground duels and the only aerial duel he attempted. 

Mangala is a clearly talented box-to-box midfielder who runs back and forth and greatly benefits his team. Forest fans will have been relieved to learn that he was only substituted due to fatigue.

Forest will have a real player on their hands if the midfielder can stay fit and continue to play in that vein week in and week out.

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The Reds' bench made a positive impact

Forest added Ryan Yates, Morgan Gibbs-White, Cheikhou Kouyaté, Emmanuel Dennis, and Remo Freuler to their bench for the match against Everton. This means that following the West Ham victory, the bench was significantly improved. 

Only Yates, Gibbs-White, and Kouyaté came on to make an impact on the match.

Yates was able to make an impact from the bench after replacing Mangala early in the second half. The midfielder demonstrated his passing range, finishing with 94% pass accuracy and completing all three long balls attempted. 

The 24-year-old also managed four shots, two of which were blocked, one of which went over the crossbar, and one of which forced Pickford to save.

Pickford's save, however, fell right into Johnson's path, who slotted the ball into the far corner to score Forest's only goal of the game. 

Gibbs-White was introduced later than Yates, but he did produce some magic.

He chased down Anthony Gordon in the final third, stole the ball from him, took the ball past the Everton player, and then changed direction to burst past Nathan Patterson before floating a dangerous ball into the box that led to a Williams shot. 

Kouyaté also came on for the final ten minutes to add to the defence, looking composed. The midfielder made one tackle, one clearance, and won the only ground duel he attempted.

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