Nottingham Forest defeated Blackburn easily, 4-1, at Ewood Park to advance to the Carabao Cup quarterfinals for the first time since 1994. Brennan Johnson of Wales scored twice in his first game back after the World Cup, and Jesse Lingard and Taiwo Awoniyi also had goals.
Following Scott Wharton's foul inside the penalty area, Johnson converted the spot-kick to give the visitors the lead. The Premier League team might have had more goals, but Rovers goalkeeper Aynsley Pears made five saves in the first half.
Blackburn was level at halftime thanks to a header from Wharton, who made up for giving up the early penalty. With a deflected free kick from Lingard, the away team regained the lead, and the visitors sealed the victory with two goals in the final 10 minutes to advance Forest to the round of eight.
For the first time since November 12, the Reds appeared to be in better shape than the other team. Five minutes into the game, Johnson had the game's first opportunity after being given plenty of space down the right but shot straight at Pears.
Awoniyi tapped a close-range attempt straight at the Blackburn goalkeeper two minutes later, forcing him into another save. Johnson emerged as the game's catalyst in the opening minutes. Thirteen minutes into the game, Johnson was too swift for Wharton's late challenge, and the visitors were given a penalty kick. To give Forest a 1-0 lead, he got up and sent Pears the wrong way.
The visitors attempted to advance once again, but Pears was in excellent form as he blocked additional attempts from Orel Mangala and Neco Williams. One minute before the break, brother Scott Wharton flicked home Adam Wharton's inswinging free-kick to tie the game for Rovers and make Forest pay for their wasted opportunities.
Eight minutes after the half, Scott Wharton pulled down Lingard, and his low free kick was deflected into the net to give the visitors the lead once more.
The Reds were eager to end the match, but Pears, who was playing brilliantly, was on hand to stop more shots from Lingard, Awoniyi, and Joe Worrall before sprinting across his goal to stop Johnson's header.
With just over 10 minutes left, Forest finally ended the match when Lingard calmly finished after slipping past Awoniyi, and Johnson's drilled goal with the game's final kick made it four to send the Championship team home.
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