33% Nottingham Forest player must dazzle on international duty to escape the axe
Nottingham Forest forward Dan Ndoye needs a strong international break to prove that Oliver Glasner should stick with him in the Premier League.
Glasner has had a tough start to life at Forest since arriving on a lucrative contract in the summer after Vitor Pereira's dismissal.
The Austrian boss has won just one of his first six competitive games in charge this season and is struggling to get their attacking play flowing freely.
He has stood by Ndoye, 25, as a starter in attack despite some less-than-encouraging performances to start the campaign.
Ndoye was linked away from the City Ground throughout the summer window, but remained in the squad as part of the new manager's plans.
He is currently on track to lose his spot in the starting eleven after struggling for form, so must impress away from the East Midlands to prove that he is the man to help Forest move up the table in the coming months.
Dan Ndoye can keep his place in the Nottingham Forest team with Switzerland showings
Ndoye was only able to register two goals and one assist in 37 appearances across all competitions last term.
The likes of Roma and Inter Milan were linked to his services in the summer, but Forest blocked his exit as Glasner made a plan for him in his team.
He has started all five of their league games so far, scoring once as he gave the Reds the lead at Liverpool last month.
A deep dive into Ndoye's stats shows that he still has a lot to prove, with just 1.4 chances created, 1.12 line-breaking passes played and only 3.64 duels won per 90 so far this season.
He has also only completed 33.3 per cent of his attempted dribbles, and is in the bottom four percentile for touches per 90 (31.1) when compared to other PL wingers.
Igor Jesus gave Forest more when he came on for Ndoye in their recent loss to Coventry, while Callum Hudson-Odoi is now fully fit and is yet to be given a real chance by Glasner this season.
Ndoye is set to play a vital role in the Switzerland squad for their upcoming Nations League B fixtures, and some strong performances for his country may be the only way the Forest manager can justify his inclusion after the break.
Forest fans can watch Ndoye in action for Switzerland next week
Switzerland's Nations League campaign gets underway away to North Macedonia on Saturday, 26 September.
They then face Scotland at Hampden Park on Tuesday, 29 September, with kick-off at 7:45pm and Forest fans in the UK able to tune in on BBC Two and BBC iPlayer.
Murat Yakin's side play host to Slovenia on Saturday, 3 October and then end the break three days later with another home game against North Macedonia.