Brighton and Nottingham Forest took a point each from Tuesday night's match between the two sides, drawing 0-0.

The hosts dominated most of the match, racking up 19 shots on goal and having 70% of the ball, yet they could not find a breakthrough.

Here are the main takeaways from the stalemate.

Although it is worth saying that Forest have been out-possessed in most of their games this season, The Seagulls played with a real swagger at times, and made a total of 618 passes, compared to Forest's 257.

De Zerbi's men created a number of chances, with Leandro Trossard and Solly March proving particularly difficult for the Forest full backs to deal with, getting in behind on several occasions.

Despite still being winless under the new manager, Brighton have managed to implement De Zerbi's possession-based style, dominating the ball in three of their 4 matches under the Italian.

Brighton threatened the Forest goal many times, with the best chances coming the way of Trossard who struck the bar in the first half, and Pascal Groß' volley towards the end of the game, which was cleverly denied by Dean Henderson.

With the Premier League champions Manchester City up next, followed by a reunion with Graham Potter and his Chelsea side at the Amex, some fans may be worried about when the first win under De Zerbi may come.

However, the Italian will be encouraged by the fact his team are playing in a way he expects and will look to build on their 7th place position in the next few weeks.

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  • The Seagulls need to be more clinical

Brighton missed three big chances in the match, and had an expected goals return of 1.7, indicating their long enduring issue of scoring goals is still in need of being addressed.

Striker Danny Welbeck linked play well, yet only had one half chance with a glancing header that went wide of Henderson's net, meaning he is still waiting to break his duck for this year's campaign.

Out of The Seagulls' 19 shots, only three managed to hit the target, a poor return for their dominance of the game, and their last 54 shots have failed to produce a single goal.

If there are ambitions from the Brighton hierarchy to push for a European place, a new striker in the January window may be something to consider, in order to end their goal-scoring woes.

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  • Forest are more organised

The Reds conceded 16 goals in four games prior to last week's 1-1 draw with Aston Villa, and had a persistent problem of conceding shots from outside the box.

The past week has seen Steve Cooper approach games with a more pragmatic and structured approach.

This style of play helped to achieve Forest's first clean sheet since their 1-0 victory over West Ham in August.

If not for a dubious penalty awarded to Wolverhampton Wanderers on the weekend, Cooper's side could have been unbeaten in three games, a much needed lift after five straight defeats.

Despite having little of the ball, and having to deal with sustained periods of pressure, Forest did not capitulate like they had done in previous weeks, a positive sign for supporters.

It was not easy to watch at times, but Forest are showing their competitiveness, and a new found resilience which will be needed if they are to avoid relegation come the end of the season.

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  •  Cooper needs to find his best eleven

Despite an improvement in defensive structure and organisation, there was still much to improve on in an attacking sense for The Reds.

Questions were raised about the decision not to deploy a recognised striker in the starting eleven, as Welshman Brennan Johnson led the line for Cooper's side.

The visitors failed to register a single shot on target, and only 27% of their long balls forward managed to reach a red shirt, a key reason as to why they struggled to retain possession throughout the game.

A midfield trio of Ryan Yates, Remo Freuler and Orel Mangala were effective in breaking up play, and won the ball high up the pitch on many occasions, suggesting a balance may have been struck in at least one area of the pitch.

Cooper has rarely named a consistent lineup, as he has attempted to juggle the 22 new arrivals that came in the summer, including striker Taiwo Awoniyi, who many fans would say is the most suited to playing centre forward and help link play.

If Forest are to solve their issue of scoring goals, they will need to discover a settled team, especially when it comes to forward options.