Nottingham Forest press conference notes – Nuno’s challenge, Worrall stance, FA Cup plan

Latest Nottingham Forest news as Nuno Espirito Santo’s Reds prepare to face Bristol City in FA Cup replay

In the little period since taking over as Nottingham Forest’s manager, Nuno Espirito Santo has already encountered many difficulties.

The Portuguese’s most recent challenge is dealing with a large number of absentees. For Wednesday night’s FA Cup match at Bristol City (7.45pm kickoff), he is low on options.

The Reds know that the victor of the fourth-round rematch at the City Ground will face Manchester United at home. Here is a recap of Nuno’s pre-game press conference with the media that came before the game.

Limited options

Nuno’s choice of the squad for Wednesday night will be influenced by a confluence of injuries, suspensions, and absences. Chris Wood, Ryan Yates, Nicolas Dominguez, Matz Sels, Gio Reyna, Rodrigo Ribeiro, Ola Aina, Willy Boly, and Ibrahim Sangare are all out for him. Callum Hudson-Odoi is questionable, while Divock Origi’s health is a concern.

After extended periods of time off the field, Taiwo Awoniyi and Anthony Elanga are still recovering from their injuries. Though Nuno doesn’t want to feel sorry for himself, he acknowledges that it is challenging to get to know his best group of players given Forest’s inability to establish any sort of selection consistency.

“It’s been challenging. We have found it difficult to maintain the routine of playing the same team every time because, in all honesty, we think that routines help us perform better,” he remarked. We can understand each other the best when you have that. I hope things get better in the future.

“There are several advantages for us. We are playing excellent football and scoring goals. The goal is to keep the enjoyable moments going throughout the games.

However, there are certain drawbacks that need to be addressed. Against Bournemouth, we didn’t get off to a good start and have struggled at set pieces.

It is far from our desired outcome. Achieving perfection is quite challenging. It will take time to meet the high requirements.

Worrall exit

Defender Joe Worrall is on the verge of completing a move to Turkey after falling down the pecking order at the City Ground. The club captain is set to join Besiktas on loan. Nuno hasn’t ruled out a way back for him in the future, though, with Worrall under contract at Forest until 2026.

“We’re still negotiating the contract. Everything seems to be going smoothly, the Reds manager stated. Joe is the captain of the team. Everyone was looking for a way out of his predicament. We want the best for him in the future. We wish him the best of luck and enjoyment while playing in Turkey.

“The goal for every player who goes on loan is to attempt to make things better so they can play. Every player on loan moves carefully so that we can get them back and assess the situation going forward.For the loan players, the goal is always the same: to help them get better so that when they come back, they’ll be stronger and more capable players.

Cup test

Having played to a scoreless draw at Ashton Gate in their first meeting, Forest are aware of what to expect from the Robins. Nuno, though, is hoping for a different game this time.

He thinks highly of the FA Cup, and he is keen for the Reds to advance in it. And he is eager to capitalize on having home field advantage in front of the crowd.

“This is the second leg of a competition, and we aim to advance,” he declared. We’re going to play against a challenging squad. We’ll try to figure it out in the City Ground, but the first game was challenging.

We’ll make an effort to learn as much as we can about the players. Since we are familiar with Bristol City’s style of play, it is up to us to complete the task at the City Ground. In order to advance in the FA Cup, we want to win the game.

“We anticipate a shift in the nature of the game.” We anticipate controlling the game, dominating it, and winning. The game must be won by us.

Settling in

Sunday marked the debuts of Sels, Reyna, and Ribeiro at the Vitality Stadium. All three players joined Forest towards the end of the transfer window. Sels entered the game right away and is expected to be the new No. 1, while Reyna played for 12 minutes and Ribeiro had a fleeting appearance.

The three signed after the first game and are therefore ineligible for the repeat, so they will not be able to participate on Wednesday night. Nuno, nevertheless, is happy with how they are settling into Trentside life.

He stated, “They have been operating well.” “On Sunday, they didn’t get many minutes, but it was still productive.

“I believe we should give them some time to get settled and organize every part of their lives. However, we are content with the way they are operating.