Forest comeback gives Karanka reason to be cheerful

AITOR KARANKA’S future as Nottingham Forest manager was fragile ahead of yesterday’s 4-2 victory against Leeds, but he will surely earn a stay of execution after this thrilling victory over the Championship leaders.

Karanka became only the fifth manager to beat Marcelo Bielsa in the league this season as ten-man Leeds suffered their second defeat in a row in another absorbing advertisement for the crazy Championship.

The Forest manager’s position was under serious threat going into this dust-up between the two old foes but this performance suggested the club should be competing with Leeds in the chase for the Premier League.

Leeds had gone ahead in the second half despite the dismissal of defender Kalvin Phillips and appeared on course to secure a remarkable win of their own until Forest scored three goals in seven minutes to swing a chaotic encounter with Irish international Daryl Murphy putting Forest 3-2 in front.

It was Forest’s first win in six games and should ease the scrutiny on Karanka, who is under pressure to mount a promotion challenge after a £23million summer spend. He clearly has the support of the home fans, who frequently chanted “we want you to stay” during the game.

Karanka said: “I think it is a big result for the team. I cannot control the things that are out of my hands. This performance was a reflection of how good the team is.”

Leeds remain top despite Bielsa suffering two defeats in a row for the first time since his appointment as Norwich closed the gap at the top with Timm Klose’s 83rd-minute equaliser against Brentford.

At the other end of the table, Ipswich are 10 points off safety after losing 3-2 at home against Millwall.