Julio Enciso cancelled out Neco Williams’ opener to earn Ipswich Town a hard-fought 1-1 draw against Nottingham Forest at Portman Road on October 23, 2026, amid a dramatic second-half VAR review that spared Issa Diop from a red card.
Friday night’s Premier League clash at Portman Road delivered plenty of friction and missed opportunities as the two sides traded blows in difficult, windy conditions. Nottingham Forest dominated large stretches of the match, racking up 17 shots and creating 2.31 in expected goals, but squandered a hatful of chances before the break and throughout a one-sided second half.
Neco Williams Strikes Early Before Julio Enciso Levels Before Half-Time
Forest took the game to the hosts right from the opening whistle with the wind at their backs. The pressure told in the 13th minute when Daniel Munoz delivered a fantastic cross to the back post, allowing Williams to sweep home and give the visitors a deserved lead as reported by Sky Sports.
"We showed we can get points out of games without it being our free-flowing best stuff."The Manager's thoughts following our draw with Nottingham Forest. ⤵️https://t.co/7GVBtJsO7c pic.twitter.com/JwA23nraV5
— https://x.com/IpswichTown/status/2113758327498764559
Just as Forest looked comfortable holding their advantage, a defensive blunder changed the complexion of the night right before the interval. In the 41st minute, Xaver Schlager inadvertently deflected a clearance off Nikola Milenkovic back into his own half. The Serbian defender showed too much of the ball to Enciso, who stabbed it away and slipped a calm finish to the right of goalkeeper Matz Sels just inside the post.
Hard fought. Tough opposition. Tough conditions. We were never quite able to get our style to get on top of theirs, really. Maybe a little spell in the first half where we got some control. It’s a game where we had to show another side to make sure that we got something.
Gary O’Neil, Ipswich Town manager, via Ipswichstar
Issa Diop Avoids Red Card Following Pitchside VAR Review
The game’s most contentious moment arrived early in the second half when Ipswich defender Issa Diop wiped out James McAtee as the Forest midfielder burst toward the penalty area. Referee Thomas Bramall initially played on, but VAR advised the official to check the pitchside monitor for a potential denial of a clear goalscoring opportunity. Following the review, Bramall issued only a yellow card to Diop and awarded a direct free-kick, ruling that McAtee’s touch was taking him away from goal and that Leif Davis was positioned well enough to provide defensive cover.
The decision left the Forest camp frustrated even if the players acknowledged the difficulty of the call.
My only question is, why did that have to go to VAR when both the referee and linesman are standing there watching? It should be an on-field decision there and then. I do agree with the decision because we don’t know if he was going to get there.
Morgan Gibbs-White, Nottingham Forest forward, via AOL
Ipswich boss Gary O’Neil, meanwhile, defended the decision from the technical area, noting that Leif Davis had sufficient pace to cover Portman Road’s turf.
Gary O’Neil Aborts Attacking Plan to Secure a Point at Portman Road
Faced with unrelenting Forest pressure and dangerous counter-attacks after the interval, O’Neil made a decisive tactical shift to protect his side from a second-half collapse. Abandoning attempts to outplay their visitors, the Ipswich manager opted to simplify their approach.
Early in the second half, I felt we needed to abort trying to outplay them. We stuck with it for a while, had some great moments from it where we were able to show the quality that we have and we were able to play through. But I felt just too many times we lost simple balls in dangerous areas and it was only a matter of time before we got punished on one of those transitions.
Gary O’Neil, Ipswich Town manager, via Ipswichstar
The adjustments allowed Ipswich to absorb attacks, though Leif Davis was forced into another clearance off the line to deny Dan Ndoye. Forest lost Neco Williams to an injury during the contest, and substitute Jack Clarke nearly snatched a victory for the hosts in stoppage time with an effort that flashed wide. The draw moves Ipswich to 10 points through eight matches in the Premier League, while Forest takes a hard-earned point away from Suffolk as they look to correct their struggles in front of goal.