Nuno has four Nottingham Forest problems to solve in crunch pre-season

The build-up to the 2024/25 campaign starts today for Nottingham Forest as they take on Chesterfield in their first friendly of the summer.

Head coach Nuno Espirito Santo previously admitted it was tough being appointed midway through last term as it meant he was denied a pre-season to get to know his squad. The Portuguese will therefore be looking to make the most of having that opportunity now.

The Reds want to push on in the Premier League when it kicks off next month, and to do that Nuno has a few things he needs to work on. NottinghamshireLive takes a look at some of the issues he will need to address before the serious action begins.

Strongest XI

It took Nuno time to figure out his best team after he took charge last December. Injuries and absences did not help his cause, but there was also a bit of chopping and changing at times.

Certain players and specific formations will always suit particular games, of course. But Forest benefitted from some consistency in team selection towards the end of last term, so using friendlies to forge an idea of his strongest line-up will be helpful for Nuno.

He has some new players to take into account and has lost others. He will want to use pre-season to take a close look at summer signings Carlos Miguel, Elliot Anderson and Eric da Silva Moreira to see where they fit in.

Nuno spoke towards the end of last season about needing to have options. He wants to have selection headaches and finish the transfer window with strength in depth. Games such as today are a chance to build fitness, but also an opportunity to try different formations and see who works best where.

Set-piece woes

It is crucial that Forest use pre-season to find a solution to one of their biggest problems of last term. Set-pieces.

Not making the most of deadball situations from an attacking perspective hindered them. But crucially, not being able to defend them at the other end of the pitch proved costly.

The Reds conceded a league-high 22 goals from set-pieces in 2023/24. They cannot afford to do the same again. Spending uninterrupted time on the training pitch should, in theory, help with addressing the issue.

Forest knew set-pieces were a problem 12 months ago. They had struggled with them during their first campaign back in the top-flight.

Simon Rusk was eventually brought in as the club’s first-ever set-piece coach. However, he had little influence in the first-team set-up after Nuno took charge and has now joined Southampton as their Under-21s head coach.

Transfer gaps

A solid start to the transfer window has been made and Nuno’s squad for the upcoming campaign is beginning to take shape. But the Reds still have work to do on that front.

The club will already be aware of the gaps they need to fill in the dressing room. It is blatantly obvious they need to strengthen at centre-back, for example.

Their run of friendlies should allow an even clearer picture to emerge, though. Nuno will be able to get a firm idea of the signings still required in order to ensure he has a balanced group.

“It is just a matter now of making the right decisions to have the squad to face what is going to be again a very tough season. What makes it through the season is the squad,” he said after the final-day win over Burnley last May.

It remains to be seen whether some of the players Nuno is yet to work with are given an opportunity to catch his eye in these friendlies. The likes of Alex Mighten, Josh Bowler and Lewis O’Brien, for example, have been out on loan. Odds are most of those players will head elsewhere – either on loan again or permanently – before the transfer window closes, but it has been known for fortunes to change based on a positive pre-season.

Finding form

Several players sparkled last season. Murillo, Callum Hudson-Odoi, Neco Williams, Anthony Elanga, Chris Wood, Ola Aina, Willy Boly, Morgan Gibbs-White, they all impressed.

The hope is that they will be able to pick up from where they left off. After all, everyone knows what they can do.

The challenge for Nuno in pre-season is to get some of those players who weren’t quite firing on all cylinders performing to their best level. Getting the most out of everyone in the group is the aim.

Ibrahim Sangare is one such example of someone who can, hopefully, reap the rewards of time spent on the training ground. The midfielder didn’t exactly make the impact it was hoped he would during his first campaign at the City Ground. With a full pre-season behind him, Forest will hope he can show why they were willing to splash out a large sum of money to sign him.