Defender Steve Cook believes Nottingham Forest can send out a “big warning sign” to their promotion rivals if they beat Bournemouth on Friday night.
The seventh-placed Reds are 11 points behind the Cherries, in second, ahead of their trip to the Vitality Stadium.
For Cook, it is a return to the club where he made almost 400 appearances and achieved two promotions in a decade-long spell.
He was almost an ever-present during Bournemouth’s five years in the Premier League - and is desperate to get there again, this time with Forest. And he feels three points on familiar territory would send out a statement to the rest of the division.
“It would be huge,” the January signing told NottinghamshireLive.
“Beating Blackburn away the other week was a statement. But this will send out a big warning sign for the teams around us that we’re not just here to make up the numbers for the play-offs, that we’re really here to mean business. We can take points off anyone.
“It’s a great opportunity for us to impose ourselves on that top six.
“It works both ways, that’s the beauty of football. We’re seeing Bournemouth as a target, we want to take points off them. They will probably look at it and think, ‘Nottingham Forest are doing well, we can send out a statement’.
“There’s two sides to each story.
“We’re definitely going to Bournemouth looking at it as, this could be a great statement for us going into the business end of the season.
“I do think it’s going to be a very good game, and one which could go either way. Whoever gets the first goal I’m sure will be a big factor in the game.”
Under Steve Cooper, the Reds have climbed from bottom of the Championship table to being on the edge of the play-off spots.
Cook, who has made eight appearances in the Garibaldi since joining on a free transfer, says other sides now view Forest differently.
“I think teams have changed how they look at us,” he added.
“When you’re at a huge club and you’re not doing well, I feel like teams see you as vulnerable opposition to play against.
“Whenever I’ve played against Nottingham Forest in the past, we knew they would be under an awful lot of pressure, because the fans are so hungry for success, and sometimes that weight can be on you.
“I feel there’s been a change here, just from being here for the last four or five weeks. The fans are loving this team, they are loving this management and where we are going. That’s putting wind in our sails, rather than being a bit of a dampener.
“That’s out there now. Teams are more worried about Nottingham Forest, rather than seeing it as an opportunity to add to the disappointment around the city.”
