Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
Nottingham Post
Nottingham Post
Sport
Sarah Clapson

Why the City Ground is an exciting place to be as Nottingham Forest face big week

Nottingham Forest have two more games to play before the international break - and they are pretty tasty ones.

First up is a clash with fellow promotion-hopefuls QPR at the City Ground on Wednesday night, followed by an FA Cup quarter-final at home to Liverpool on Sunday.

Steve Cooper’s side closed the gap on the Championship’s top six to two points with their 4-0 rout over Reading at the weekend.

And they will be aiming to sign off for the fortnight’s hiatus on a high.

Reds reporter Sarah Clapson answered fans’ questions and responded to comments in a live Q&A on our Forest Facebook page.

Q: This is a big week, isn’t it?

A: I’d agree with that. This week is really important. It’s exciting, too. Two more home games before the international break, starting with QPR on Wednesday night - that’s a big one in the league.

The one after that doesn’t really need any introduction, of course… Liverpool in the quarter-finals of the FA Cup is a really tasty one.

Forest go into the week on the back of a really good result, though, so they will be full of confidence.

It was a really good team performance in the second half on Saturday - they reacted in the right way after losing their way before the break, and blew Reading away. All four of the goals were absolutely cracking.

That sets them up nicely for this week, although the two injuries put a dampener on things.

QPR are going to be a very different test to Reading.

Everyone knows how Mark Warburton teams set up, so it won’t be an easy game.

They’re having a very good season and are right up there in the table. It’s a real six-pointer.

After the start they had, it’s just great that Forest are in this position. They’re still in with a real chance and have got some momentum behind them.

The City Ground was a great place to be on Saturday. It always is when Depeche Mode comes on at the end and Steve Cooper gives the fist-bumps.

There’s a lot of positivity and a lot of belief. At this stage of the season, that’s exactly what you need.

Once we get past the international break, into April, that’s when the run-in really starts. That’s when things start to get decided.

Forest have closed the gap, and they still have plenty of points to play for. There will be many more twists and turns yet.

It’s still so tight at the top end of the table. It’s really difficult to call who’s going to finish in the top-six.

But Forest have got as good a chance as anybody, if they can keep playing like they did in the second half on Saturday. Play like that and they’ll pick up plenty of good results.

And they don’t fear anybody at the moment. They go into every game believing they can win.

I’m sure that will be the same against Liverpool, too - they will give it a right go.

I just hope what happened in the first seven league games doesn’t come back to bite them, when it comes to where they finish.

Q: Do you think Keinan Davis and Sam Surridge could play together?

A: I’m not so sure whether they could work together, but it would be interesting to find out - if an opportunity allows.

It might involve tweaking the system a bit to play them both. It’s been working so well, so I’d be reluctant to change that just now.

They’ve both been doing really well, though, so it’s a tough call who starts.

It was a bit harsh on Surridge to drop back to the bench on Saturday, after he’d impressed against Huddersfield.

But Davis has been outstanding since he signed in January. He’s just a menace. He must give defenders nightmares. He’s got power, strength, pace, a good touch and he can finish.

It was good to hear he’s been working with Lewis Grabban while Grabbs has been out injured. That’s not a bad mentor to be learning from!

Competition for a place in the team is going to be even more fierce when Grabban returns - which will hopefully be not too long after the international break.

Keinan Davis celebrates scoring his second goal for Nottingham Forest against Reading as Djed Spence looks on (Getty)

Grabban and Davis had played together before he got injured, but now Surridge is in the mix as well.

It’s a great headache for the manager to have. Three strikers who offer different things but can all score goals.

Surridge has taken his two so far really well. Like Davis, he arrived with a question mark over whether he could find the back of the net, but if Forest can keep supplying chances, the pair of them have shown they can take them.

You need as many players as possible scoring goals, so Forest have a few good options on that front.

I do think Grabban can have a huge part to play in the final few weeks. After the international break is crunch time - that’s when you need your goalscorers and your influential players.

Q: We’ve not seen Forest play like this for years. It’s good to see we’ve got our Forest back.

A: Forest are a really good watch at the moment. The games are generally enjoyable and entertaining, whether they get the right result or not.

You know they are always going to play to win and keep fighting until the final whistle.

They are capable of playing some really good football, too. The second half on Saturday was fantastic.

It’s exciting.

Whether it’s going to be enough to finish in the play-offs this season is anybody’s guess at the minute.

But Forest are in with a chance. You want to be going into the final weeks with something to play for, and Forest have that. They are one of several teams firmly in contention.

If it doesn’t happen this year, it won’t be for the want of trying.

Regardless of what happens, you can see progress is being made. You can see there’s a plan and a vision. It’s clearly mapped out where they want to go and how they want to play.

The manager is very keen to instil an identity; to make sure they play a certain way whoever they are up against. You can see the building blocks of that already.

The connection which has developed between the team and the fans is also really important. It’s not been as strong as this for a long time.

Q: Do you think Brice Samba will get the No.1 spot back, or has Ethan Horvath done enough to claim it?

A: The shirt is Horvath’s at the moment. And deservedly so at the moment. It’s his to lose.

It’s difficult to put forward a case to make the change and leave Horvath out, because he hasn’t really done anything wrong.

He didn’t have too much to do against Reading, but made some decent stops when he had to and kept another clean-sheet.

He does make me nervous with the ball at his feet, but Samba can be guilty of a few nervy moments as well.

As a shot-stopper, Horvath has been really good. His decision-making is decent and he comes for crosses confidently.

Samba has the edge with distribution, but I don’t feel any less confident about Forest getting a result with Horvath in goal.

It’s always a big call to change your goalkeeper at any stage of a season. But it would be an even bigger call now, to change again at such a decisive stage.

I don’t think you should chop and change goalkeepers too much, if you can avoid it, so I’d stick with Horvath.

Nottingham Forest goalkeepers Brice Samba and Ethan Horvath against Blackpool (Getty)

Q: What are your thoughts on Brennan Johnson? He seems to have lost his confidence in the last few games.

A: He has had a quiet few games. He’s not been terrible, by any means, but has just not had the same impact as he’s had in others. That’s partly because he set the bar so high.

Even when he’s having a quiet game, he’s capable of popping up with something - be it a goal, an assist or just making something happen.

Young players, in particular, will always go through peaks and troughs.

I don’t think it’s anything to do with the speculation about his future or his contract status. He’s a very level-headed young man and has got a good group of people around him. He’s also got a manager who won’t allow that to happen.

I have absolutely no doubt that in the final weeks of the season he’s going to be a really key player.

I wouldn’t be surprised to see him and Spence shine against Liverpool, either. They’ve thrived in the big FA Cup games so far.

Where will Forest finish this season? Have your say in the comments below

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.