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3 August, 2019

Brennan Johnson debut vs West Brom

On this day in 2019 Brennan Johnson makes his Forest first-team debut against West Bromwich Albion.

Player legacies

Senior debut
Brennan Johnson, former Forest player.
Brennan Johnson, former Forest player. Image: OhNoNotYouAgain, via Wikimedia Commons

Brennan Johnson’s Forest first-team debut came in a 2-1 Championship defeat to West Bromwich Albion, but the brief appearance later gained extra meaning.

The match started brightly for Forest. Matty Cash scored with an eighth-minute volley after Albert Adomah’s assist, giving Sabri Lamouchi’s side the kind of opening-day lift supporters wanted. West Brom responded through Kyle Edwards before Matty Phillips struck the winner, leaving Forest with frustration rather than a point.

Brennan Johnson, former Forest player.
Brennan Johnson, former Forest player. Image: OhNoNotYouAgain, via Wikimedia Commons

Johnson entered the game as an 88th-minute substitute, still a teenager and still at the start of his senior career. At the time, it was only a late cameo in a disappointing home defeat, but it was also the first senior step for one of the academy’s most important modern graduates.

His Forest story grew far beyond this first appearance. Johnson later became a major figure in the 2021-22 promotion season, scoring important goals during the run to Wembley.

By the time he left for Tottenham Hotspur in 2023, the debut against West Brom looked less like a footnote and more like the first public glimpse of a homegrown player who would help change the club’s direction.

Match Highlights

Sources

BBC Sport; ESPN; Nottingham Forest official references

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On this day in …
2019
Brennan Johnson debut vs West Brom

Brennan Johnson’s Forest first-team debut came in a 2-1 Championship defeat to West Bromwich Albion, but the brief appearance later gained extra meaning. The…

Player legacies