Steve Cooper has heaped praise on Nottingham Forest defender Harry Toffolo after a 1-1 draw against Brentford. The 28-year-old returned to Premier League action and made an immediate impact.
The player has endured a tough few months away from the football pitch. He had some charges hanging over his head following some betting breaches earlier in his career.
Now, however, all of that has been put to bed. Forest player Toffolo will be keen to focus on playing football and yesterday he showcased exactly what he can still bring to the Forest team.
Cooper raves about Forest defender Toffolo
The player came on at a difficult moment in yesterday’s match. He was introduced just after Moussa Niakhate had seen red for a second bookable offence.
Within moments of his introduction, Toffolo had assisted an equalising goal for Forest. His teasing delivery saw Nicolas Dominguez head home to send the City Ground into pandemonium.
Cooper has now made a claim about Forest defender Toffolo after the game. He’s suggested that he’s not really surprised that the experienced player produced the goods when it mattered.
He told Match of the Day 2: “Harry (Toffolo) has been out of the picture, he gets his head down and gets on with it, He’s an unbelievable professional, he’s probably the best crosser of the ball at the club, to be honest, with his delivery and we saw that.”
Toffolo can play a part this season
Despite his performance yesterday, it does feel as though Toffolo is still the third-choice left-back these days. Ola Aina and Nuno Tavares were both missing through injury yesterday but they’re not thought to be serious problems.
That could leave Toffolo frustrated further down the line. However, all he can do is grasp any opportunity he does get with both hands and he definitely did that yesterday
The cross was pin-point and the header from Dominguez was clever. It proved a nice Forest moment for Toffolo and the delight was etched all over his face after the goal.
Toffolo is a likeable character in the Forest dressing room. After his cameo yesterday, Cooper has some food for thought and the pressure has been piled back on Tavares and Aina for a place at left-back.
