Nottingham Forest 0 Middlesbrough 2: On-loan duo on target for Boro

Forest have now taken just one point from their opening seven matches in the Sky Bet Championship and a run of 13 league games without a success under Hughton represents the club’s worst run since February 2004.

The writing looked on the wall as soon as Slovenian international Sporar, recruited from Sporting Lisbon, opened the scoring in the first half, with Forest having only scored more than one goal once in their last 25 league contests.

But Hernandez, drafted in from Norwich, made victory absolutely certain for Neil Warnock’s men, when he capitalised on a mistake between home defender Loic Mbe Soh and goalkeeper Ethan Horvath.

Misunderstandings had been evident in Forest’s play right from the start when Ryan Yates and James Garner gifted possession in the middle of the pitch to James Lea Siliki, who drove forward before firing over as he approached the penalty area with less than three minutes on the clock.

Hopeful long-range attempts from Brennan Johnson and Garner, meanwhile, failed to extend Lumley before the visitors forged in front midway through the half.

Sporar left Forest centre-back Joe Worrall trailing in his wake as he sprinted on to Marcus Tavernier’s ball through the right channel and he then smashed a rising 12-yard shot past the exposed Horvath after 24 minutes.

In response, another Garner effort from distance was deflected off target by Lea Siliki, while Matt Crooks’s header from a corner cleared the crossbar.

Horvath blundered for Boro’s second goal when he took a heavy touch trying to control Mbe Soh’s firmly-struck back pass and gifted an open goal to Hernandez, who gleefully found the net.

Nottingham Forest: Horvath, Mbe Soh (Richardson 74), Worrall, McKenna, Lowe, Johnson, Yates, Garner (Lolley 67), Zinckernagel, Grabban, Taylor (Xande Silva 67). Unused substitutes: Tobias Figueiredo, Joao Carvalho, Cafu, Samba.

Middlesbrough: Lumley, Anfernee Dijksteel, Hall, Fry, Peltier, Howson, Lea Siliki (Jones 71), Tavernier, Crooks, Hernandez (Watmore 87), Sporar (Ikpeazu 80). Unused substitutes: Olusanya, Bamba, Malley, Daniels.

Referee: J Linington (Isle of Wight).