Alan Shearer identifies two Nottingham Forest players who were 'turned inside out' at Bournemouth
Alan Shearer has reasoned that, while much praise has understandably come the way of Nottingham Forest's defensive pair Nikola Milenkovic and Murillo this season, the pair couldn't live with Bournemouth's livewire attackers as the Reds were well beaten on Saturday.
In a campaign full of high points under Nuno Espirito Santo thus far, and with Forest as a result cemented in the Champions League places for now, the heavy defeat at the Vitality Stadium this weekend will certainly be remembered as one of the lows - and Forest, moving forwards, must put it down to a bad day at the office.
The Cherries struck through Justin Kluivert and Antoine Semenyo, while in between Dango Outtara helped himself to a hat-trick as Andoni Iraola's men swept aside another Premier League rival - they've scored 16 goals in their last four matches in all competitions and, clearly, Forest were on the receiving end.
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Milenkovic and Murillo have struck up a formidable partnership at the heart of the Forest defence this season and have prided themselves on clean sheets, but Bournemouth's front-line - which is devoid of their injured centre forwards Evanilson and Enes Unal - proved to be too powerful.
"The pace about their passing and their play...it was just too much for Nottingham Forest to handle," Shearer said. "Two players who we've praised all season, in Milenkovic and Murillo, and rightly so, but they were turned inside out. We've said so much about the goalkeeper, and the great season he has been having, but not today."
It was an afternoon on which results didn't go elsewhere for Forest; Liverpool, Arsenal, Newcastle and Manchester City all won to squeeze the pack at the top of the Premier League table even closer together. For pundit Danny Murphy, finishing in the top four for Forest isn't something he feels they're capable of over 38 games - but he'd very much like to see them, or Bournemouth, manage it.
"I hope one of them does, because I think it'll be brilliant for the Premier League," Murphy said. "My gut feeling is Chelsea, Man City, Newcastle and Villa will have that greater strength in depth and that little more know how and experience. I still think it's unlikely but what a story it'd be."
