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I Want to Dare to Dream, Realism is an April Disease - Nottingham Forest Pre-Season Report
Friday, 27th Jul 2018 14:00 by HarryFromBath

In the 12th of a series of pre-season reports, HarryFromBath assesses the mood around the Championship clubs by delving into their forums, looking here at how things have progressed at the City Ground this summer. All of the teams in the division will be covered between now and the start of the season.

“This is real life Championship Manager, it’s crazy”, “Everything feels right both on and off the pitch. I say every year that this could be the year, but now I truly believe that good times are coming”, “It feels like we could have something special”, “I don’t want to be realistic, I want to dare to dream.”

“With the amount we've spent, anything other than a top-six finish will be a failure.” A major squad overhaul including three high-quality Portuguese additions has raised expectations. In one poll, 28 per cent of fans are predicting a top-two finish with a further 47 per cent forecasting a play-off place.

“Viva la Portugal”, “Whether we do any better will depend on how quickly the new signings gel and on just how good the foreign lads are”, “It’s sure to be better than the last two seasons and play-offs are a possibility if all goes according to plan. Anyway, I'm keeping the end of May clear just in case.”

Aitor Karanka

“Karanka has taken just six months to completely overhaul the squad”, “It's fairly clear that he has been able to bring in better quality because of a greater reputation”, “I'm happy that he has already noticed the complacency and attitude problems that have been our downfall for decades now.”

The 44-year-old former Middlesbrough boss replaced Mark Warburton at the beginning of January and fans have relished his work in the summer transfer window. They are confident that he will add organisation and a solid defensive structure to complement the flair players who have now arrived.

“A Karanka side will always keep clean sheets”, “The tighter team shape was pretty evident from the outset”, “I fully expect our goals against column to be much better this season though once Karanka gets his men playing his way. That will be enough alone to move us up the league a fair bit.”

“We will find out how good a manager Karanka is in the next few months. Overhauling the squad is great if it works. On paper we look now vastly stronger but football isn’t played on paper”, “With this squad there are no excuses. He would be doing something wrong to have us outside the top six.”

A Raft of Signings

“The recruitment of new players has accelerated. I look at the incoming players and have to say that most, if not all, are players capable of getting promotion.” Forest supporters have been impressed by the pedigree of the seven new faces to arrive this summer. “These blokes are mustard, lads.”

“These Portuguese lads can play a bit, can't they?” The three 21-year-olds have caused the greatest excitement. Two Benfica arrivals are midfielder Joao Carvalho who has signed permanently along with winger Diogo Goncalves on a loan deal. Winger Gil Dias has also arrived on loan from Monaco.


“The Portuguese lads can be wayward but you can get away with that when you can come up with a moment of magic”, “The three amigos all showed glimpses and nice link up play. I was willing Diogo to run at the full-back. A minute later he skinned him and put a great ball along the six-yard box.”

“When Dias gets his legs pumping it is an absolute thing of beauty. He’s a bit tentative to run at people at times. I imagine he’s worried about getting hacked down by English defenders but they will get really comfortable, really fast”, “Dias is enjoying himself here, he loves a roulette.”

“Carvalho is looking worth every penny. He’s constantly involved and always looking for a pass or a one-two”, “He was dropping deeper eventually in the Malaga pre-season friendly and this is one advantage of your number 10 being more of a midfielder than a forward.”

The defence has been bolstered by the addition of players with English league experience. Keeper Costel Pantilimon, 31, has switched from Watford having played on loan for Forest last season along with 34-year-old centre-half Michael Dawson (from Hull) and left-back Jack Robinson, 24 (from QPR).

player imageBradley Johnson v Costel Pantilimon

Two 30-year-old strikers, Algeria international Hillal Soudani from Dinamo Zagreb and Lewis Grabban from Bournemouth, have arrived. Tobias Figueiredo, a 24-year-old defender (from Sporting Lisbon) and midfielder and former Blues loanee Jack Colback (on loan from Newcastle) are back after loan spells at Forest last season.

“Soudani is an excellent alternative in being a bit more direct, a lot stronger and very hungry. He is not as talented on the ball as the Portuguese but oozes flair and creativity. “He has brilliant intensity and a fantastic left foot”, “He is lively, running the channels and not afraid to try to take on his man.”

“While many are excited with of the price of the Portuguese lads, Grabban is the stand out signing for me. He’s the difference between a top-half finish and potential promotion”, “He’s so calm in front of goal, isn't he? His movement is fantastic, his hold-up play is great, and he’s a tidy finisher.”

player imageLewis Grabban

A Major Clear-Out

Seven former first-team regulars have left this summer. Defenders Eric Lichaj (to Hull), Jack Hobbs (on trial recently at Bolton) and Armand Traore (now at Turkish club Rizespor after being on loan at Cardiff for part of last season) have departed while veteran midfielder Chris Cohen has now retired.

Departing midfielders include Andreas Bouchalakis (to former club Olympiakos), David Vaughan (to Notts County) and winger Ashkan Dejagah (unattached). Three young players loaned out for the season are Jorge Grant (to Luton), Tyler Walker (to Mansfield) and Aaron Smith (to Hamilton).

Pre-Season Results

Forest started their pre-season in Spain, beating the Gibraltarian Lincoln Red Imps 5-0, losing 1-0 to Real Betis and defeating Malaga 3-0. They have subsequently drawn 2-2 at Oldham before winning away to Scunthorpe 1-0 on Wednesday. Their final friendly is at home to Bournemouth on Saturday.

PantilimonDarikwaFigueiredoFoxOsbornYatesGuediouraGoncalvesCarvalhoDiasMurphy

The starting XI at Scunthorpe (above) is likely to start their campaign at Bristol City although Colback may be brought as a holding midfielder while Grabban may replace Daryl Murphy. Fans have been happy with the balance of creativity and defensive solidity which the team has demonstrated.

“Some lovely side to side passing and nice one touch stuff”, “The full-backs get forward really high and this when having two holding players is useful”, “Karanka has told the full-backs if they don't finish the game with chalk on their boots they aren't wide enough. Both wingers tuck in a lot more.”

Ryan Yates has been widely praised. The 20-year-old has signed a new contract having played on loan last season at Notts County. “I’m very excited with Yates. He is the biggest lad on the pitch and looks like he will use the ball perfectly every time he gets it. He has a real presence about him.”

There is wide agreement on the need for another striker. “Let’s be honest, any success we do have next year will be down to a striker that can put the ball in the net and sorting out set pieces. If we don’t address either of those things we won’t realistically be challenging.”

“It's all quick, with pace and movement, then it hits Daryl Murphy and it becomes static.” The former Town striker has been criticised for pre-season displays. “I still see him as an excellent off the bench option against tired defences when we need a battering ram. He is a constantly yard off the pace.”

Getting Carried Away

“I’m in full ‘getting carried away’ mode now but come the first couple of weeks of August, I'm sure the optimism will be all gone”, “We are still very much work in progress but the signs are good and I have a tingle, therefore I predict we will win the league at a canter with record points and goals.”

“We look brilliant.” Behind their jovial veneer, there is a serious expectation of success this season given all the additions. “You don't appoint a quality manager like Karanka and send him to Lidl. Now that we've gone down this route then the play-offs are the absolute minimum for this team.”

Websites

The busiest Forest message board is the busy Forest Forum.


Photo: Action Images



Please report offensive, libellous or inappropriate posts by using the links provided.



BobbyBell added 14:42 - Jul 27
It seems like a lot of clubs are better prepared for the season than us but hey ho we could just be the surprise package. I'm certainly not getting carried away with expectation as we could take a few weeks or even months to really get going but maybe a late run in the new year to push for a possible top 6.
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crazyblue68 added 14:54 - Jul 27
Late run into the top 6! Who are you kidding mate. We are bottom 6 at best.
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1RWR added 16:02 - Jul 27
Oh pish to you crazyblue68!
Have a little more faith dear boy!
10th to 12th will do me first season, after that 6th to 8th, after that....who knows!
Cheer up, it's summer & footy starts proper next week.
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Currie10 added 16:35 - Jul 27
with ya crazy- plenty to do our end
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Steve_ITFC_Sweden added 07:45 - Jul 28
“Soudani is ... not as talented on the ball as the Portuguese but oozes flair and creativity. He has brilliant intensity and a fantastic left foot.” That must put the "Portuguese" on a level with Messi in that case. Also, I wouldn't get too excited about Grabban either, by the way. Other than that, I think Karanka is a pretty good manager and I expect Forest to do pretty well, without pulling up any trees.
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