Ange Postecoglou kicks off his Nottingham Forest tenure with a crunch clash away to Arsenal this afternoon.
The former Tottenham Hotspur boss is sure to get a lively reception at the Emirates Stadium (12.30pm kick-off). But he will be eager to get off to a positive start after being appointed Reds head coach on Tuesday.
It hasn’t exactly been ideal preparation for Postecoglou ahead of today’s match. He has had very little time to work with his new squad, especially as some were away on international duty during the week.
Additionally, Forest were dealt a huge blow in the build-up to the game with the news defender Ola Aina is facing a lengthy spell on the sidelines. The Nigerian sustained a hamstring injury when playing for his country in midweek and is expected to be out of action for three months.
Aina’s absence leaves Postecoglou with a selection dilemma in the capital. The 28-year-old has been a key player in the Garibaldi and will be a significant miss.
Deadline day arrival Oleksandr Zinchenko might ordinarily have been in contention to step into the defence. However, the left-back is ineligible to play against his parent club.
It could be fellow summer signing Nicolo Savona comes in for his debut. It would be a case of going straight in at the deep end for the 22-year-old, though, given he has no experience of English football.
Savona, like Neco Williams, can operate on either side of the back line. Of course, Postecoglou might opt to deploy a three-man defence and call upon his wingers to act as wing-backs.
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Over time, the Greek-born Australian will want to impose his ideas on the group. But given the short turnaround, he might stick with predecessor Nuno Espirito Santo’s preferred 4-2-3-1 system - after all, that is what the players have been used to.
Nuno had plumped for Ibrahim Sangare and Elliot Anderson as his first-choice midfield in that formation. However, Juventus loanee Douglas Luiz will hope the change in manager will see him finally get an opportunity to show what he can do.
At the top end of the pitch, Postecoglou has plenty of options if he wants to pursue an attacking approach. In the Reds’ first three games, Callum Hudson-Odoi and Dan Ndoye joined Morgan Gibbs-White in providing support for front man Chris Wood, but the new boss might want to mix things up.
Dilane Bakwa put pen to paper on deadline day to bolster Forest’s wide options. Meanwhile, Omari Hutchinson and James McAtee will be eager for their first starts.
Up front, it might be Postecoglou decides to give Wood a rest given the New Zealander has racked up the air miles on international duty. If that is the case, Igor Jesus or Arnaud Kalimuendo might get the nod to lead the line.
Predicted Forest XI: Sels; Savona, Milenkovic, Murillo, Williams; Anderson, Luiz; Bakwa, Gibbs-White, Hudson-Odoi; Kalimuendo.
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