Anton Stach's Late Free-Kick Gives Leeds 1-0 Win Over Nottingham Forest

Anton Stach curled home a stunning 88th-minute free-kick to hand Leeds United a 1-0 opening-day win over Nottingham Forest at the City Ground, giving Daniel Farke's side their first Premier League win at the venue since 1972.

It looked to be heading for a goalless draw for long spells, with both sides struggling to find a breakthrough despite decent chances at either end. Forest, under new manager Oliver Glasner for his first match in charge, had the better of the openings, hitting the woodwork twice through Nikola Milenkovic and, later, via a free-kick that bounced back off the post from a crowded box. James Trafford, making his Leeds debut in goal, produced a smart save to deny Igor Jesus early on, while Matz Sels kept out efforts from Brenden Aaronson and Tarik Muharemovic at the other end as the game remained finely balanced.

The decisive moment came in the 88th minute when Milenkovic fouled Stach just outside the penalty area. The German midfielder stepped up himself and curled a low effort past Sels at his near post, sending the away end into raptures and securing a smash-and-grab victory for the visitors. It capped an ideal start for Leeds following last week's 4-0 win over Augsburg, while Forest, who fielded no new signings in their starting eleven, were left to rue their missed chances on Glasner's first outing at the helm.

The result gives Leeds a perfect start to the season as they look to build on last term's survival fight, while Forest, with ambitions of a top-half finish under their new manager, will need to sharpen their finishing quickly with a Carabao Cup rematch between the two sides already on the horizon this week.