Enzo Maresca admits Manchester City left comeback too late in defeat by Nottingham Forest

Enzo Maresca said Manchester City failed to show the required intensity in the first half as they were beaten 3-1 by Nottingham Forest in the 10th round of the Premier League.

City fell behind to two goals before attempting to recover, but Maresca believes the deficit proved decisive.

“It was clear that we did not perform at the required level in the first half and we were unable to match the intensity these matches demand,” Manchester City manager Maresca said on the club’s official website.

“We conceded the first goal and then the second. After that, we tried to come back, but when you are two goals behind, most of the time it is already too late.”

Liam Delap scored twice for Nottingham Forest, while Jair added the third. Ryan Cherki scored Manchester City’s only goal.

Maresca said his side improved after the interval and had opportunities to reduce the deficit further, but were punished on the counter-attack.

“We started the second half much better, managed to score a goal and had chances to add more, but we conceded the third during a counter-attack,” he added.

The result marked Manchester City’s third successive defeat in the Premier League. They had previously lost to Aston Villa and Brighton, in that order, before the setback against Nottingham Forest.

Manchester City remain second in the Premier League table on 21 points, but are now six points behind leaders Arsenal.

Their position is also under threat from Brighton. If Brighton beat Brentford in the same round of matches, they will move above Manchester City.

Nottingham Forest’s victory lifted them to nine points and 16th place in the table.