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11 November, 1978

Victory at Spurs in Euro Cup season

On this day in 1978 Forest win 3–1 at Tottenham during their first European Cup season.

Eras and timeline markers

Start of a golden era
Goal scorer John Robertson, pictured 1980.
Goal scorer John Robertson, pictured 1980. Image: Hans van Dijk / Anefo, Nationaal Archief / CC0, via Wikimedia Commons

Nottingham Forest produced a strong away performance at White Hart Lane, beating Tottenham Hotspur 3–1 in Division One during the club’s first European Cup season.

The match was goalless at half-time before Forest took control after the break. Viv Anderson opened the scoring with a right-footed shot from an Archie Gemmill pass, John Robertson added a second after an individual run, and Garry Birtles later made it 3–1 with a left-footed shot from a John O’Hare pass.

Goal scorer John Robertson, pictured 1980.
Goal scorer John Robertson, pictured 1980. Image: Hans van Dijk / Anefo, Nationaal Archief / CC0, via Wikimedia Commons

The result came in front of a crowd of 50,541 and showed that Brian Clough’s side still had sharp league form while European commitments were becoming part of the rhythm of the season. Spurs were a serious opponent at a major ground, which gave the away win extra weight.

Forest would go on to become European champions in 1979, but afternoons like this helped show the depth of that side. They could travel to White Hart Lane, manage the pressure, and still leave with a clear win built on second-half goals from Anderson, Robertson and Birtles.

Match Highlights

Sources

11v11; The City Ground; FootballDatabase

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Notts County 0–2 Nottingham Forest
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Nottingham Forest 3–0 Blackburn
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Vitória SC 1–1 Nottingham Forest
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Portimonense 1–2 Nottingham Forest Sporting CP 4–1 Nottingham Forest
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Udinese 1–0 Nottingham Forest Barcelona 1–0 Nottingham Forest
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Nottingham Forest 2–1 Bayer Leverkusen
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Nottingham Forest 2–0 Stade Brestois 29
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Nottingham Forest 0–1 Leeds
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Nottingham Forest 0–2 Leeds
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Liverpool 2–2 Nottingham Forest
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Nottingham Forest 0–0 Tottenham
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Aston Villa 1–2 Nottingham Forest
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Nottingham Forest 0–1 Coventry
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Crystal Palace 14:00 Nottingham Forest
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Nottingham Forest 16:30 Arsenal
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Ipswich 20:00 Nottingham Forest
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Brentford 15:00 Nottingham Forest
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Nottingham Forest 17:30 Manchester City
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Bournemouth 15:00 Nottingham Forest
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Nottingham Forest 20:00 Chelsea
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Hull City 20:00 Nottingham Forest
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Nottingham Forest 15:00 Brighton
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Sunderland 15:00 Nottingham Forest
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Nottingham Forest 15:00 Everton
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Manchester United 16:30 Nottingham Forest
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Newcastle 19:30 Nottingham Forest
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Nottingham Forest 15:00 Fulham
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Nottingham Forest 19:30 Hull City
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Manchester City 15:00 Nottingham Forest
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Chelsea 15:00 Nottingham Forest
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Coventry 16:00 Nottingham Forest
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