A few days ago, Steve Cooper had talked about this being Nottingham Forest’s “most intense week” of pre-season.
He could hardly have envisaged how his team’s training camp in Spain would end. The Reds’ third friendly didn’t exactly pan out how they might have thought.
Forest got the win, beating Levante 2-1 at their opponents’ training ground with goals from Ryan Yates and Danilo. But a sending off for Taiwo Awoniyi just before the break made for a tough second 45 minutes for the visitors amid soaring temperatures.
Reading too much into pre-season results and performances is always unwise. Nevertheless, here are some things which caught our eye in Saturday’s match.
No chance of Reds fans being able to jump into the sea after the midfielder found the back of the net, with the game played behind closed doors. But it was a terrific finish by Yates with less than a minute on the clock.
He’s eager to get his first goal in the Premier League, having almost done so on a few occasions last term. And if he takes up a more advanced role, as he did against Levante, you wouldn’t bet against him getting on the scoresheet a few times this time around.
“I just want to really be relentless in trying to improve,” Yates said last weekend. “After the first couple of weeks of the summer I got itchy feet again and just started thinking about football and what I want to get out of the season.
“It’s alright for a couple of weeks, but then you just want to crack on again. I was watching Morgan (Gibbs-White, for England Under-21s) and thinking it would be nice to be out there. I want to add some goals from midfield, especially if I’m going to play a little bit higher, as a No.8, then that will be massive for me.”
Yates looked really bright playing further up the pitch. It is clearly something he and Cooper have discussed with a view to the upcoming campaign, and it will be interesting to see if he takes up that role in the remaining friendlies
Dangerous Danilo
There is already much excitement about what there is to come from Danilo this term. It has the potential to be a big year for him.
He came on leaps and bounds in a short space of time after he made the move to the City Ground in January. And at the age of 22, there is still so much room for growth. He can get even better.
He was lively against Levante and made some threatening runs early on, before eventually coming away with something to show for them. It was a nice bit of play between the Brazilian and Yates. He was a little fortunate with the way the ball ricocheted into his path, but he finished well with his right foot.
With Morgan Gibbs-White on an extended break after his exploits with England Under-21s and Brennan Johnson sidelined, Forest didn’t have too much flair and creativity in the starting line-up. But in Danilo they have a player who is always keen to get forward. It might only be a friendly, but getting on the scoresheet will still be a nice confidence-booster as he aims to get plenty more goals when the serious action starts.
Make no mistake – Nottingham Forest’s return to the Premier League was a roaring success.
Staying in the division was the aspiration and the primary goal, and it was mission successful.
There is no doubt that it was a turbulent first campaign back for Steve Cooper and his side, and now the emphasis will be on stability.
To mark another exciting season ahead Nottingham Forest, we have put together a bumper 48-page special for you to enjoy.
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It costs £3, on sale for advance order on the online shop NOW and in retail outlets from July 26.
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