The seismic style shift from Nuno to Ange Postecoglou will suit some players Nottingham Forest signed over the summer
Tottenham replaced Nuno Espirito Santo with the moderately more progressive Antonio Conte before hiring Ange Postecoglou. Nottingham Forest have cut out the middle man and lurched from one extreme to the other.
Nuno worked wonders with Forest, taking them from 17th to seventh in the Premier League table with a strategy reliant upon sound defensive foundations and lightning-quick counter-attacking.
In many ways, Postecoglou’s philosophy is the polar opposite. He prefers a high line to a low block, having more of the ball than the opponent, pressing high rather than sitting off.
Across the last two Premier League campaigns, Forest ranked 19th for both possession and PPDA (passes per defensive action, a metric that measures pressing intensity). Spurs ranked fifth and first in those respective charts.
It will be fascinating to see how Forest’s players adapt to such a seismic strategic shift and it is easy to envisage some coping better than others. Nuno clearly did not fancy some of Forest’s summer signings, but Postecoglou might.
Here are five Forest players who could be perfect for Angeball, and three others who may struggle.
Perfect for Angeball
Oleksandr Zinchenko
Oleksandr Zinchenko’s loan from Arsenal to Nottingham Forest largely slipped under the radar on transfer deadline day, with Marc Guehi’s collapsed move to Liverpool dominating headlines.
It seemed a curious switch at the time, but it could work out perfectly for the Ukrainian, considering Postecoglou’s preference for inverted full-backs.
In another era – or perhaps just another league – Zinchenko would be a central midfielder. He lacks the physicality to play there in the Premier League, but is a superb technician and tailor-made for the hybrid left-back role.
Douglas Luiz
Another high-profile loanee. It will be interesting to see whether Douglas Luiz can slot back into a Premier League rhythm after a tough season with Juventus.
At Spurs, Postecoglou struggled to find the right profile to anchor his midfield. In theory, Luiz is ideally suited to being the progressive, ball-playing No 6 that Postecoglou wants to build a team around.
The question is whether or not he is the force now that he was at Aston Villa, but at only 27, there is no obvious reason why he shouldn’t be.
Elliot Anderson
England’s midfield fixer will have a big role to play under Postecoglou, both in and out of possession.
Elliot Anderson excelled as a No 6 for the Three Lions during the international break, but he can be just as effective as a No 8, owing to his ability to press high and play forward.
The 22-year-old ranked top in Forest’s squad for combined tackles and interceptions last season and second only to Morgan Gibbs-White for progressive passes.
Murillo
There were whispers that Tottenham were sniffing around Murillo during Postecoglou’s time in north London, with the Brazilian viewed as a possible competitor to Micky van de Ven at left centre-back.
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Murillo will be important to Postecoglou (Photo: Getty)
Murillo may be mostly associated with booting the ball away from goal – he made 242 clearances last season, 24 more than any other player – and kicking the ball very, very hard, but he is no slouch either (albeit not in Van de Ven’s speed class).
A viable option in the break-glass-in-case-of-emergency covering centre-back role, or stretch-hamstring-in-case-of-emergency role, as it unfortunately became for Van de Ven.
Morgan Gibbs-White
Attacking players who combine craft with graft should fare well in a Postecoglou side. Last season, Gibbs-White had more than 50 shots, created more than 50 chances and attempted more than 50 tackles. The Australian will love him. Tottenham’s loss is Big Ange’s gain.
May struggle
Nikola Milenkovic
Nikola Milenkovic’s desperate scything down of Harry Kane after being beaten for pace by the 32-year-old England captain wasn’t exactly a great endorsement of his ability to adapt to Postecoglou’s notorious high line.
There is no doubt that the Serbian is a superb penalty box centre-back: only six players won more aerial duels than him last season. Does his skill set suit a more expansive style of play? The jury is out.
Matz Sels
Matz Sels has arguably been the Premier League’s best goalkeeper over the past 12 months, a statement supported by last season’s Golden Glove win.
The Belgian is an undeniably brilliant shot-stopper, but is a throwback in the age of the ball-playing, sweeper-keeper.
Sels ranked second for launches (passes over 40 yards) among goalkeepers last season; Guglielmo Vicario, Postecoglou’s No 1 at Spurs, was 27th.
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Ryan Yates
Forest fans love Ryan Yates and rightly so, considering he has risen through the ranks to become club captain and is the final link to the play-off winning promotion squad.
He has similar qualities (energy, work-rate, desire) and deficiencies (technique under pressure, limited passing range ) as Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg, who lasted just one season under Postecoglou at Spurs.
Should remain an important squad player, but unlikely to start many.