Brendan Rodgers said Leicester City's emphatic 4-0 victory over Nottingham Forest on Monday was reward for his players' "resilience" after registering their first win of the Premier League season.
James Maddison inspired the victory with two goals, including a stunning free-kick, either side of Harvey Barnes' superb finish, before setting up Patson Daka for Leicester's fourth.
Leicester had lost their previous six games to leave Rodgers fighting to avoid the sack following his criticism of the club's Thai owners for failing to back him in the transfer window.
Winning the East Midlands derby should give Rodgers at least a little breathing space, with Leicester moving one place above rock-bottom Forest on goal difference.
"When you don't win games it comes on to you. We had a horrendous summer, that's the reality of it and that continued into the start of the season," Rodgers said.
"I just had to remind the players of their ability and continue to support them. They have bags of resilience. We just needed to turn that corner tonight and we did that."
Forest are now without a win in six games, losing five in a row and conceding 16 goals in their last four matches.
That dismal run has turned up the heat on manager Steve Cooper, who took charge when Forest were bottom of the Championship last season and led them back to the Premier League for the first time since 1999.
It would appear harsh on Cooper to sack him so soon after winning promotion, but Forest owner Evangelos Marinakis would have hoped for better results after sanctioning a hefty investment in 21 new players in the close-season.
"It is another disappointing result, there's no doubt. We came with a plan and we were nowhere near good enough in the duels which was disappointing," Cooper said.
"There were times where I felt we could have been more competitive, but I'm not looking at these lads and thinking they don't care. They are just a really fresh group trying to come together."
Maddison was the catalyst right from the start as he teased the visitors' defence, but crucially Forest striker Taiwo Awoniyi hit the post after racing onto Morgan Gibbs-White's defence-splitting pass. That proved the decisive moment as Leicester seized control with two goals in quick succession.
Leicester v Nottingham Forest player ratings
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LEICESTER CITY PLAYER RATINGS: Danny Ward – 7. A spectator for most of the match, had very little to do throughout his side’s dominant victory. His first clean sheet of the season. Getty -
James Justin – 7. Did well to prevent Johnson from causing danger down the right, looked promising going forward too. A strong performance. Getty -
Wout Faes – 8. An impressive home debut for the Belgian who didn’t put a foot wrong defensively. Will be delighted to keep a clean sheet on his first game. Could be just what Leicester need to steady the ship. Getty -
Jonny Evans – 8. A solid day for the veteran defender, did well to cope with the pace of the away side’s attacking threats. Getty -
Timothy Castagne – 7. Defensively sound, linked up well with player-of-the-match Maddison down the right when going forward and produced some dangerous crosses into the box. PA -
Wilfred Ndidi – 6. Didn’t put a foot wrong in the first half but looked to be nursing a slight injury, so was brought off at half time as a result. Reuters -
Harvey Barnes – 8. A fantastic finish for his goal in the first half to make it 2-0. He cut in from the left and unleashed an unstoppable effort with his right foot. Fellow midfielder Maddison took the limelight, but this was a classy performance from Barnes. PA -
Youri Tielemans – 8. Looked assured in the centre of the park and played a key role in winning the midfield battle. Getty -
Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall – 8. Provided plenty of energy from midfield, making dangerous runs from deep constantly, one of which led to Maddison’s set piece goal. Getty -
James Maddison – 10. An exceptional performance from the midfielder, tallying two goals and an assist, one of which was a laser accurate free kick into the top right corner. A controlling performance. Getty -
Jamie Vardy – 7. Looked bright after being sidelined with injury, if not a little rusty. Had a few opportunities in the first half to get on the scoresheet but faded before being subbed. Reuters -
Boubakary Soumare (Ndidi 46’) – 7. Slotted comfortably into the midfield with his side 3-0 up. Didn’t put a foot wrong in the second half. Getty -
Patson Daka (Vardy 61’) – 8. Netted his side’s fourth and final goal with an impressive backheel finish past Henderson. A great shift from the bench. Getty -
Dennis Praet (Tielemans 80') – N/R. The Belgian didn’t have too much to do with the victory already secured (no match photo available). PA -
Marc Albrighton (Maddison 85’) – N/R. Came on with game already won and went through the motions. Getty -
NOTTINGHAM FOREST PLAYER RATINGS: Dean Henderson – 4. Conceded four against his former side, some might argue too many from outside the box. Had very little protection, and showed his frustrations by beating the ground on more than one occasion. Getty -
Renan Lodi – 4. Replaced Harry Toffolo but had a torrid night and was unable to cope with the threat of Maddison attacking down the right. A day to forget for the left back. PA -
Steve Cook – 4. Like the rest of his defensive teammates, the skipper struggled to cope with Leicester’s attack. Getty -
Scott McKenna – 4. His deflection ended in Leicester breaking the deadlock. Cook and McKenna looked nervous every time Leicester attacked. Getty -
Neco Williams – 4. Looked to create going forward but was brought off at half time after conceding three. Beaten too easily on his inside by Barnes in the second goal. Reuters -
Lewis O’Brien – 4. Unable to make an impact on the game and was subbed off at half time. Put very little pressure on Leicester’s attacking players. Getty -
Cheikhou Kouyate – 4. Brought back into the side, he lost the midfield battle and gave away the free kick for Maddison’s second goal. Booked, then hooked, at half time. Getty -
Jesse Lingard – 4. Gave the ball away in a dangerous area, which led to Maddison’s opener. The former Manchester United man’s link-up play was poor, and he’s still waiting to be play a part in his first Forest goal. Getty -
Morgan Gibbs-White – 5. Offered little going forward, though was arguably Forest’s most effective player. PA -
Brennan Johnson – 5. One of Forest’s brighter sparks despite the lack of attacking intent from his side. He drove forward with the ball from deep, and worked tirelessly throughout. Reuters -
Taiwo Awoniyi – 4. Had a great opportunity to get an equaliser for his side at 1-0 but hit the post. Other than that, the forward was starved of opportunities. Reuters -
SUBS: Ryan Yates (O’Brien 46’) – 6. Worked hard to make things happen from the midfield and improved Forest’s presence. Reuters -
Remo Freuler (Kouyate 46’) – 5. Given a tough task with the game already gone, and though Forest improved it was a tough 45 for Freuler. Getty -
Serge Aurier (Williams 46’) – 6. A tough way to make your debut, but he’ll no doubt start the next game based on this relatively positive first run out. Getty -
Orel Mangala (Lingard 69') – 4. Unable to offer much with his side already down and out by the time he featured (no match photo available). PA -
Emmanuel Dennis (Awoniyi 62’) – 4. Struggled to make an impact, but the game was a lost cause at this point. Getty
There was more than a slice of luck about Maddison's 25th-minute opener as he pounced on Jesse Lingard's awful clearance for a 20-yard strike that took a deflection off Scott McKenna as it looped past Dean Henderson.
If that was fortuitous, there was no denying the excellence of Barnes' effort in the 27th minute.
Picked out by Vardy's pass, Barnes took aim from the edge of the area and curled a superb effort into the far corner as Rodgers raised his arms in jubilation.
Maddison was giving England manager Gareth Southgate a reminder of his quality ahead of the World Cup after being left out of the recent Nations League squad, and the midfielder admitted he is targeting a place in the national team setup for Qatar.
"That is an ambition of mine, it is a goal of mine," Maddison told Sky Sports. "An opportunity at that level is one I would desire and one I know I would make an impact at."
Rodgers backed his midfielder to force his way into Southgate's plans, saying: "It's such a shame for the country and for him. James is an absolutely brilliant player and I hope he can somehow get into the team."
Maddison delivered the knockout blow to Forest in the 35th minute with a fine free-kick that whistled past Henderson from 25 yards.
Maddison was still tormenting Forest in the second half and his low cross was perfectly placed for Daka to flick an audacious backheeled finish past Henderson in the 73rd minute.
