Nuno Espirito Santo’s team has now reeled off five consecutive top-flight victories. It is the first time Forest has won as many Premier League games in a row since 1995.

Chris Wood put the visitors ahead in the 15th minute after combining well with Anthony Elanga before lofting the ball over Jordan Pickford for his 11th league goal of the season.

Morgan Gibbs-White doubled Forest’s tally just after the hour, with Wood turning provider, and only a fine double-save from Pickford denied the visitors a third late on.

Forest’s win moved it, above Arsenal and Chelsea, while Everton is in 16th place.

Nuno's side continues to exceed expectations, having already surpassed its entire season points total from the 2023-2024 campaign after just 19 games.

But the Forest boss was keen to temper any UEFA Champions League qualification expectations, warning his players there is work to do despite momentarily leapfrogging Chelsea and Arsenal in the standings.

"We are competing really well, especially in this game. It was very tough and both teams had a very short period of rest," Nuno said. 

"We were organised and really committed to help each other. We then exploited the space well that Everton gave us.

"We had to make a change [to our line-up] just before the game. It was a moment to reset, reorganise and try a different thing. The players understood it well.

"It is confidence, the belief and the knowledge that in the final third you need composure. They scored beautiful goals.

"But it doesn't mean anything. We haven't achieved anything yet."

Goalscorer Wood echoed the thoughts of his manager after the New Zealand international netted his 11th Premier League goal of the season.

He has now scored 22 top-flight goals under Nuno, the joint most by a Forest player under a manager, along with Stan Collymore for Frank Clark, when he scored 22 in 37 games.

"It is nice [to be second], but we are not worried about that. We have got to keep focusing on what we are doing and take it game by game," Wood said.

For Everton and its manager Sean Dyche, a four-game unbeaten run came to an end, dropping them to 16th on the table but still three points clear of the bottom three.

Dyche bemoaned his side's inability to break down Forest's compact defence, despite having managed to shut out Arsenal and Chelsea in recent weeks.

"We didn't deliver it anywhere near in the first half, and they did," Dyche said.

"They have done that to other teams this season. It is hard to break down a packed defence when they get their noses in front.

"I don't think they had too many chances, but a packed defence is hard to break down. We didn't ask enough questions overall against a team that is good at seeing a game out."