Nottingham Forest drew 0-0 at home to Stoke City Saturday.
Stoke City goalkeeper Jack Butland once again proved his worth as he put in another terrific performance as his side held fellow promotion challengers Nottingham Forest to a 0-0 draw at the City Ground.
Forest were hoping to build on last weekend’s 1-0 win over Sheffield United by recording another victory against a Stoke side which have started to become more resilient under manager Gary Rowett.
Over the course of the 90 minutes, it was the hosts who had the better of the opportunities, but they couldn’t get that illusive breakthrough, with Butland in the Stoke net proving once again that he has Premier League quality.
Forest fans thought the former Birmingham City goalkeeper was the difference between their side picking up a draw as opposed to collecting all three points, writing on Twitter how he is too good for this level:
Butland has been in top form this season, and he is arguably the reason why Stoke are only five points off the top six right now and not further down the table as their general performances suggest they should be.
The 25-year-old has helped the Potters keep three successive clean sheets, and seven overall this season despite Stoke averaging a received 12.8 shots per game – the eighth worst in the league (Whoscored).
A recent report in The Sun claims Huddersfield Town are looking at Burnley goalkeeper Tom Heaton in January to help bolster their Premier League survival hopes, and surely Butland would also improve them.
Butland was linked with Chelsea in the summer (Birmingham Mail), and It wouldn’t come as a surprise if another top-flight team comes in for him in January, especially with Stoke floundering in mid-table, but the Potters must resist any temptation to sell if they want to challenge for promotion this term.
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