All the questions before this game were on Jack Grealish. He is becoming more of a story the less he plays.
Grealish's headline-grabbing night out broke no news but will always be lapped up by tabloids and Pep Guardiola did his best to put out a needless fire before it turned into anything bigger. At the same time, he put the onus very much on Grealish to do his talking on the pitch. To ensure he is on the back pages more than the front pages.
Grealish didn't do enough to keep his place from the FA Cup weekend as Guardiola returned to the Doku-Savinho-Haaland front three that he dubbed Manchester City's 'future' at Tottenham. That is the standard he has been publicly challenged to reach and his wait for a first Premier League start since December goes on.
READ MORE: David de Gea gets Manchester United reunion as image emerges - 'what a joy'
READ MORE: Manchester United get surprising Amad injury boost and give team news vs Arsenal
At Forest, Grealish was one of the last substitutes to emerge along with Kevin De Bruyne, his younger colleagues coming out earlier along with Ilkay Gundogan. Yet it was Grealish tasked with becoming the 'extra man' in the starting XI drills and setting up their shots and crosses.
Whether that was a punishment, or a challenge, is probably neither here nor there. But it was a reminder that while he remains close to the first team he seems to be slipping further away with every snub, every negative headline, and every good performance from Doku and Savinho.
Grealish was out from the start of the second half to warm up and stayed on the touchline for most of the second 45. But he had to watch when Guardiola called for Mateo Kovacic, then Kevin De Bruyne, then Omar Marmoush as he looked to change his attack.
The winger was a lonely figure at the Trent End when Callum Hudson-Odoi cut through the defence and fired through Ederson to seal a famous win for Forest. The home substitutes left his side and raced across the pitch to their hero. Grealish could only stand still, eventually trudging back to the bench.
Thomas Tuchel's first England squad is announced this week and Grealish is almost certainly not going to be in it. Hudson-Odoi just made a very strong case to replace him.
Guardiola would not look to him to save the game and Grealish was unused (or unavailable) for the seventh time since his last league start. On three other occasions he's been brought on, for one minute, seven minutes and 28 minutes.
At full-time, Grealish stayed in his seat on the bench for a minute or so, trudging towards the pitch, and was one of the first down the tunnel. He hadn't played, but there was no long trip to thank the fans.
It is that kind of behaviour that will be analysed more closely the longer his run without a start goes on. Or even a substitute appearance.
The front three didn't fire quite as well at Forest. Yet Grealish was still not the answer. The headlines will only continue as his wait for a return from the cold continues.
