Nottingham Forest is back in the Premier League after 23 years. The three-time European Cup winner was too strong for Huddersfield Town on Sunday at Wembley in an all-deciding game 1-0. In France, joint record champion Saint-Étienne was relegated from Ligue 1.
The only goal came in the 43rd minute and was credited to defender Levi Colwill, who passed his own keeper. Nottingham had more possession than Huddersfield throughout the game, who never hit the target.
At Huddersfield, Carel Eiting was not part of the selection. The former Ajax midfielder has been working on his second stint with ‘The Terriers’ since January, who were relegated from the Premier League in 2019.
Nottingham last played at the highest level of England in the 1998/99 season. Since then, the former club of Hans van Breukelen and Pierre van Hooijdonk, among others, has camped in the Championship and League One.
In the previous round of the play-offs, Nottingham, which can receive around 220 million euros in revenue thanks to the promotion, had settled with Sheffield United. ‘Forest’ then won on penalties.
Previously, Championship champion Fulham and number two Bournemouth already secured promotion to the Premier League. Burnley, Watford and Norwich City descend.
Record champion Saint-Étienne relegated from Ligue 1
In France, Saint-Étienne was relegated from Ligue 1. The ten-time national champion lost in the return of the play-off on penalties from AJ Auxerre, after the game ended in 1-1 after both regular time and extra time.
Hamza Sakhi gave Auxerre the lead early in the second half, after which Mahdi Camara equalized Saint-Étienne fifteen minutes before the end. The first leg had also ended in 1-1 and so an extension had to be played. No goals were scored, after which Auxerre won the penalty series 5-4.
After the game things got completely out of hand in the Stade Geoffroy-Guichard. Supporters stormed the field and threw fireworks and objects into the crowd.
Saint-Étienne shares the record number of league titles with Paris Saint-Germain. The club was last champion of France in 1981. Auxerre returns to Ligue 1 after a 10-year absence.
For the app users, tap the tweet to watch the chaos at the Saint-Étienne stadium.