Nottingham Forest are suffering badly – and it’s all down to these ‘four players’
Sean Dyche has been confirmed as the new Nottingham Forest manager, quickly following Ange Postecoglou after his dismissal in recent days.
Postecoglou was sacked following Forest’s defeat to Chelsea on 18 October, forcing the club to move quickly in their attempts to land his replacement.
Dyche was always seen as the front-runner, despite links with the likes of Marco Silva and Roberto Mancini, but has now been handed a huge task to reverse their fortunes.
The boss is expected to immediately reverse Postecoglou’s changes and revert back to a more pragmatic style as previously seen under Nuno Espirito Santo.
However, there are concerns that the issues at Forest are currently more than just surface-level, tactical concerns, and Dyche must make changes quickly.
Sean Dyche to deal with four major issues at Nottingham Forest
Nottingham Forest’s struggles so far this season are not entirely down to managers, however, with a number of their star players causing “major issues”.
Morgan Gibbs-White and Chris Wood have yet to live up to last season’s high standards, while Murillo‘s injuries and the departure of Anthony Elanga have been serious blows.
That is according to former Man United and Blackburn chief scout Mick Brown, who remains very well-connected within the game, as he exclusively told Football Insider that Dyche will be tasked with inspiring his players to get back to their best.
“There are some major issues the manager has to deal with,” he told Football Insider.
“Chris Wood isn’t scoring goals in the way he was last season, that’s always going to be a big blow.
“Murillo isn’t in there at the moment, he’s had these issues with injuries and he’s been a big miss because he was crucial to the success they had under Nuno.
“They lost Elanga, who was a massive threat out wide for them and a big part of the way they were able to counter attack with pace and directness.
“And Gibbs-White hasn’t looked the same player he did last season, it feels like things aren’t quite clicking for him for whatever reason that may be.
“When you put all four of those issues together, it’s not a surprise their performances have tailed off, no matter who the manager in charge is.
“Dyche has to go in there now and make sure he’s getting the best out of the players, especially Wood and Gibbs-White because they’re performance issues.
“When Murillo comes back it will be a big boost, and Dyche should be the right man to get them back to the success they had because his style of play will suit them better.”
Dyche has been backed to get the best out of Wood after previously speaking highly of the striker during their time together at Burnley, with positive progress expected.
Nottingham Forest players confused by managerial changes
Brown told Football Insider on 20 October that Nottingham Forest’s stars have been effected by turmoil behind the scenes with constant uncertainty and confusion.
While Dyche has been backed to be a success at the City Ground given his previous record at reversing clubs’ fortunes, he will firstly have to deal with off-field issues.
Alongside the growing uncertainty, however, Forest could be at risk of losing key players with the likes of Elliot Anderson and Gibbs-White attracting interest.
Football Insider revealed on 7 October that Nottingham Forest players are not happy behind the scenes, with many left disillusioned by this season’s constant changes.
Those concerns have grown once again following Postecoglou’s departure, with the players now set to adapt to another manager’s style of play and demands.
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