Former Nottingham Forest manager Ian McParland has said that this is the club’s best chance of securing promotion and has tipped the Reds for going up into the Premier League.
The club’s former caretaker boss was talking to Notts TV recently and he praised how the club has gone about things in the Championship this season.
He said (via Nottingham Post): “Even when they are getting beat 1-0, you think they are going to nick a goal. Or if it’s 0-0, they are capable of nicking a goal.
“At the start of the season, I said we’d need to see how it pans out, but maybe seventh or sixth position – just getting in the play-offs slightly.
“But after having a look at all the teams and watching the games, I’m thinking this is the best chance they’ve had for years of going up. And if they don’t go up this year, I think it’s a failure.”
Solid start to the season
Sabri Lamouchi’s men have started the Championship season in a good fashion this term. They are currently as high as fifth in the league, racking up 28 points in 15 games so far. They are just five points off table-topping West Bromwich Albion.
Forest have lost only three games in the league this season. Even though he lost their opening outings of the campaign, they lost just that one game in their first 11 games of the season. Since then though, the Reds have won two games and have lost just as many times.
They have managed to win both of their last two games, beating Luton away from home and beating East Midlands rivals Derby in the local rivalry clash this past weekend.
Their next game sees Lamouchi’s men travel to Bristol City away from home in what promises to be an important clash near the top of the table. They are sixth in the league, but Forest have one game in hand over them.
TIF Tactics
While Forest have done well and they deserve credit for where they are, they would need to keep going at this rate. Once the ongoing international break ends, games will come thick and fast and depth will come into question in the Championship.
One area in which Forest do lack depth is the forward position. While Lewis Grabban has scored seven times and second-choice striker Rafa Mir has one assist to his name, Forest do not have any other options in that position.
And since they have scored the sixth-lowest number of goals in the league (20), it is a sign that they need to score more goals in the long run. They have to sign a forward player to reduce the load on an aging Grabban as they will need that when the season wears on.