Crystal Palace could not turn a full half with an extra player into a breakthrough, leaving The City Ground with a 1-1 Premier League draw after Nottingham Forest held firm with 10 men.
Forest hit the front inside five minutes when Morgan Gibbs-White finished from close range after Palace failed to deal with Ola Aina’s long throw.
Palace pushed back and Matz Sels kept them out but the turning point arrived just before the break when Neco Williams handled Jefferson Lerma’s goalbound header on the line.
Referee Tony Harrington showed a straight red card and Ismaila Sarr converted the penalty in stoppage time to level it.
Despite dominating the ball after the restart, Palace lacked incision. Will Hughes shot over early in the second half and Brennan Johnson headed wide as the visitors best chances slipped away.
Sky Sports, citing Opta reported Palace did not manage a shot on target in the second half with Sarr’s penalty remaining the last on target across the match.
Forest also had to reshuffle at half time when Sels was forced off with a suspected groin issue and Angus Gunn came on for his debut yet the home side still looked dangerous on the counter and defended their box with urgency to see out the point.
The draw kept relegation threatened Forest in 17th while Palace’s slump deepened reporting a 12 match winless run in all competitions and Sky Sports noting nine without a league win.
“We lost our nerves,” Crystal Palace manager Oliver Glasner said to Sky Sports. “The red card changes the whole feel of the game,” stated Sean Dyche.
