Saturday’s draw at Crystal Palace might have been a fourth game without a win, but Nottingham Forest still have plenty to be encouraged by from their start to the season.
“I thought this was another step forward, in terms of our performance,” head coach Steve Cooper said after the Selhurst Park stalemate. “We know we’ve got to keep going with the plan and work even harder than we did last week, then we’ll give ourselves a
chance of becoming what we want to become.”
As was the case in previous games, the Reds showed what they are capable of in the capital. They put together some lovely passages of play and controlled much of the first half, they just lacked a cutting edge in the final third.
They are still gelling as a team, though, following changes in the summer. And some players are still adapting to English football. Nevertheless, there is cause for optimism as it looks like Forest are not too far away from fully clicking.
With the international break upon us, we have taken a look at how the players have performed so far. Here is our player by player review for the first few months of the season. We have only featured those who are still at the club.
Matt Turner
The American goalkeeper registered his second clean-sheet for the Reds against Palace. It will have done him the world of good after a difficult afternoon in the previous game against Brentford.
Generally, Turner has done well. He is a solid shot-stopper.
However, he has had a few nervy moments. He will also know fellow summer signing Odysseas Vlachodimos is breathing heavily down his neck.
Grade = B
Joe Worrall
The skipper finds himself watching from the sidelines at the moment. He hasn’t got on the pitch in the past three games, although he has been in the squad.
That is more a sign of the fierce competition at centre-back than a reflection of his previous contributions. He was outstanding in the win at Chelsea, for example, with his performance being even more admirable as it came just days after the death of his uncle in tragic circumstances.
Others might be ahead of him in the pecking order now, but Worrall will always stand up to be counted. And don’t underestimate how important he is in the dressing room.
Grade = B
Scott McKenna
Whereas Worrall has at least been on the bench in recent weeks, McKenna hasn’t made the squad. Like his teammate, the Scot was excellent at Stamford Bridge. However, he had endured a shaky start prior to that.
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