The match began with Forest taking the lead, thanks to Chris Wood's quick thinking after a corner was not cleared by Brentford. The home team was put under pressure, but they managed to hold on despite a few close calls, including a strong save by Matz Sels.

Forest has had its share of issues with VAR in the past, and this match was no exception. A free-kick by Elliot Anderson was deemed not to have been handled by a Brentford player, much to Forest's dismay.

The Tricky Trees, as they are affectionately known, were able to channel their frustration into a positive outcome. Before halftime, they doubled their lead through Dan Ndoye, who headed in a cross from Morgan Gibbs-White.

The second half saw Forest continue to dominate, with Gibbs-White coming close to scoring a fourth goal with an acrobatic volley.

Brentford was given a glimmer of hope with 15 minutes remaining when Igor Thiago scored his first goal for the club after Ibrahim Sangaré was penalized for handling the ball inside the area.

However, this consolation goal proved to be too little, too late for Brentford, who suffered their first-ever opening-day defeat in the Premier League.

Forest, on the other hand, celebrated their first opening-day win in the league since 2017, a timely boost ahead of their upcoming UEFA Europa League campaign.

Chris Wood was awarded the Flashscore Man of the Match award for his impressive performance.