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“You’ll never sing that, champions of Europe,” was chanted through the ground as Nottingham Forest followers reveled in another result against Malmö. Much has happened since Trevor Francis’s decisive header secured the continental trophy in 1979, but the club still cherish those glorious moments. Equally, major shifts have occurred in the weeks since the manager took charge, with Forest appearing refreshed and securing a convincing win courtesy of goals from Arnaud Kalimuendo, Yates, and Milenkovic, enhancing their hopes of progressing in the European competition.

Gaining Steam with Another Straight Victory

For Forest, this result – against a Malmö side that had not played for nearly a month after finishing sixth in their domestic league – marked a third straight triumph across all competitions and added to the positive energy generated from the previous week's stunning victory at Liverpool. While this fixture was a reminder of the club's European Cup success in name, the encounter itself was free of any significant jeopardy or nerves.

It proved to be an event filled with sentiment, an longed-for reunion and the third competitive meeting between the teams since the European Cup final over four decades past.

The home side fully embraced the history, paying tribute to the heroes of that era by providing them, along with their visiting counterparts, the red-carpet treatment. 13 members of the Swedish club’s team from that time were also present. Both teams enjoyed a meal together prior to the kick-off. Frank Clark, Colin Barrett and company received a tumultuous reception when they assembled on the field 15 minutes before the start, and a typically impressive tifo was shown in the home stand.

Remembering History

“May 30, 1979, John Robertson crossed it in from the left flank,” displayed half of a giant tifo, in capital letters. While nobody required a reminder of what ensued, the rest was unfurled as the players emerged from the dressing rooms. “There is Francis,” it stated. A second brilliant tifo showed Brian Clough observing proceedings beside his right-hand man Taylor on a bench at the Munich stadium.

Control from the Outset

So, Forest had soaked up those wonderful memories, but what about the performance on the night? It was strong, too. They were in full command from the moment the forward whistled an attempt wide inside two minutes and built a two-goal advantage by the break. Nicolás Domínguez sent an early header wide and then Zach Abbott, on his maiden European start, had a go.

It seemed appropriate that Ryan Yates, who came to the club as an eight-year-old, made the first dent in the Malmö defense led by their own homegrown captain, Jansson, previously of Leeds and Brentford. The Forest centre-back Nikola Milenkovic saw a cross deflect off a defender and into the path of the midfielder, who swept home right-footed from just inside the penalty area to score his first goal since last March.

Another Strike Confirms Dominance

The scorer was involved in Forest’s next goal on the brink of half-time, as well, his unmarked header saved by the goalkeeper Melker Ellborg but the alert forward poised to convert the rebound from close range. James McAtee, the playmaker given a seldom start and just his second outing since September, was the spark, chipping a delicious ball towards his teammate at the back post.

A minute earlier, Callum Hudson-Odoi driven shot was deflected wide off Malmö back Rösler, son of ex- Man City forward Uwe, and an unmarked the defender also previously had a powerful header smartly repelled by Ellborg, who returned in place of the ex- Villa goalkeeper Robin Olsen.

Malmö’s Difficulties

This was Malmö’s first match since the Swedish Allsvenskan concluded on November 9th, and they found it hard to equal the home team's energy. The Reds made it 3-0 when the defender applied the finishing touch after his defensive colleague Murillo kept alive a set-piece. The captain had a shot blocked, but the Serbia centre-back Milenkovic pounced on the rebound.

Forest then pushed for more, with Hudson-Odoi chipping a effort on to the crossbar before Ibrahim Sangaré sent an ambitious effort off target from distance. It was that kind of evenings. The manager, mindful of the upcoming league game here against Brighton & Hove Albion, made seven changes from the side that stunned Liverpool at Anfield last weekend, when they also netted three goals, though he called on Elliot Anderson, Dan Ndoye and Igor Jesus during the second half.

Smooth Evening for the Team

It proved a hiccup-free evening for Nottingham Forest. The coach could take off Murillo with the match long since boxed off and later introduced 19-year-old full-back Jimmy Sinclair for his first-team debut. He discussed the club legends supplying “bits of gold” at weekly get-togethers and, almost five decades on, the current crop showed they are able of producing of excitement, too.