Last time out, Villa held 10-man Leeds United to a point in a frustrating performance. Next up, a trip to the City Ground against a Nottingham Forest team without a win in their last six.
I spoke to The Forest Preservation Society to find more about Forests’ eventful start to the season.
UTV PODCAST X @FORESTPRESSOC
Nottingham Forest have had a very busy transfer window with near enough a full revamp of the squad. Do you think the size of the rebuild will limit you in any way this season?
The rebuild of the squad was far greater than we would have wished but Forest fans can see why it was necessary given the number of loan players who were key to our team last season and those who were out of contract or probably werenβt going to be good enough.
Putting so many new faces together is not easy, especially in the topflight, and we are seeing evidence of that now. At times we look like the proverbial team of strangers because that is pretty much what they are.
The hope is that we have acquired players talented enough that when some is settling down of the team we can move up a couple of gears. We bloody hope so anyway!
Steve Cooper has signed a new long-term deal showing the boards faith in the man that got Forest up. How happy are you with the board’s decision?
Delighted. It might look strange to reward a man who has overseen five straight defeats and when we are bottom of the table, but Steve Cooper has been instrumental to our salvation from Championship plodders and is bond with the supporters is everything great about the club right now.
Our constant stream of managers is well documented, and change has rarely worked for us. The time has come to let someone put down some roots come what may.
Forest have struggled in the first stage of the season picking up four points, do you believe the performances have been positive enough to suggest an improvement later on in the season?
We started pretty well, opening day at Newcastle aside. Games against West Ham, Everton and Spurs we genuinely looked very good and perhaps it started to give some false hope about how we could adapt in the Premier League. Since then, we have had a huge reality check, some defeats are to be expected like the loss at City but home defeats to Bournemouth and Fulham (we were ahead in both) were damaging.
That said, we do not look awful for the most part. As said, there is some moulding of a new squad going on which is unfortunate, but we look like we have some promise and with two of the most exciting signings – Niakhate and Mangala – now returning from injury the hope it is that it will improve us considerably.
Of the millions spends and the all of these big names, Iβd point you in the direction of one of the players who cost us a relatively small fee – Lewis OβBrien from Huddersfield looks like a fantastic player and one who already looks at home in the Premier League.
Finally, whatβs your score prediction?Β
To Forest fans’ credit, we have stayed United during this bad run. The Villa game was already being targeted as a game to turn out and back the team and the news of Cooperβs new contract has heightened that.
Of course, this guarantees nothing in terms of results, but Iβve seen how much it can help at Forest and Iβm wondering if it could give us the edge. So, Iβll say 2-1 Forest.
OPPOSITION FOCUS | STEVE COOPER
Steve Cooper won the hearts of Nottingham Forest fans as he took their team from a relegation fight to promotion. As a reward, the Forest board has handed Cooper a five-year new deal despite a shaky run of form.
I want to take a look at Cooperβs career so far to see if Cooper can keep Forest in the Premier League.
Cooper instills a control-based mentality within his team, resulting in periods of direct attack. However, Cooper also likes his team to counter-attack. We have seen more of this from Forest against teams that like to dominate possession. This method works with the style of players Forest has bought in such as Lingard and Awoniyi as well as academy product Johnson.
Forest’s most common formation this season has been 3-4-2-1, which has provided cover for their weaker defence. Having said that, Cooper switched to a 4-3-2-1 against Leicester, resulting in Leicester’s first win of the season. It will be interesting to see whether Cooper sticks with the four defenders despite the teething problems or returns to his more reliable three at the back.
Cooper has used this method for the majority of his career, and it has helped cement his reputation as a quality British manager. This is perhaps unsurprising given Cooper was one of the youngest coaches to obtain his UEFA Pro License at the age of 27. After learning the trade at the Wrexham and Liverpool academies.
Cooper got his first lead role through the England Youth system. During his time with the young lions, he oversaw the development of players such as Sancho, Foden, and Hudson-Odoi. Cooper led England to second place in the U17 European Championships and first place in the U17 World Cup with this talented group of players.
Cooper tried his hand at domestic senior football with Swansea City after impressing with England’s youth team. After going unbeaten in his first two months on the job, he was named EFL manager of the month. That’s not bad. Cooper used the transfer window to bring in players he had previously coached, including Rhian Brewster, Marc Guehi, and Conor Gallagher. These additions helped Swansea reach the play-offs in Cooper’s first full season in the Premier League.
Cooper led his team to the playoffs again in his second season before losing in the final. Cooper left Swansea by mutual agreement in July 2021. Cooper’s next job came two months later, and his managerial advancement continued. Cooper was able to return Forest to the Premier League after a long absence.
MY PREDICTION
In recent seasons Villa has enjoyed playing Nottingham Forest and this shouldnβt be any different this time around. Having said this, I, like many others, just cannot be confident. We havenβt looked good at all this season and Forest will be up for this after their battering last time out. Nevertheless, Iβll try and remain positive and guess a 3-2 win.Β
AUTHOR | ELLIS BURNETT
Author’s UTV PODCAST archive ellisburnett – UTV Podcast | An Aston Villa Blog
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