Ange Postecoglou will hope this is the week when his Nottingham Forest tenure really takes off after a tough opener away to Arsenal.
The Reds’ new era under the Greek-born Australian started with a 3-0 defeat at the Emirates Stadium on Saturday. But Postecoglou pledged he would quickly transform Forest into a team in his own image as they look to bounce back.
Taking on the Gunners in the capital was always going to present a difficult challenge a few days after the head coach’s appointment. He will at least have had a bit more time to get his feet under the table come Wednesday’s Carabao Cup clash away to Swansea City.
It has certainly been a busy period on the banks of the Trent. Below, NottinghamshireLive takes a look at the latest goings-on at the City Ground.
Trick missed
Gary Lineker has joked Postecoglou might have been better off sitting out Saturday’s trip to Arsenal. That particular corner of the capital has not been a happy hunting ground for Forest for some time, and so it proved again for the new man’s first match in charge.
There was no new manager bounce for the Reds at the Emirates. Postecoglou went into the game having had only one training session with his whole squad after being appointed midway through the international break. And Lineker has quipped few would have blamed the ex-Tottenham Hotspur chief had he opted to postpone his return to the touchline.
“I wonder whether Ange Postecoglou missed a trick,” he teased on his The Rest Is Football podcast. “You know that old thing where new manager comes in and they say: ‘Right, I'll watch the first one from the stands, the No.2 is in charge.’
"Arsenal away. It obviously didn’t bother him, he wanted to get in. He only had one day's training, so certainly not the game to judge him on.”
Transfer sadness
Jota Silva completed a loan switch to Besiktas last week, but it came after the Reds winger missed out on a return to his native Portugal. Sporting Lisbon had been eyeing up the 26-year-old for much of the summer and thought they had finally snapped him up on Premier League deadline day.
An agreement was reached with Forest just before the cut-off, only for the necessary paperwork to not go through in time. The Portuguese outfit are said to have missed out on getting their man by a matter of seconds.
“He was a player I really liked and identified with,” Sporting boss Rui Borges told Mais Futebol. "But unfortunately, there are two sides: Sporting and Nottingham.
“Because of all the rushing around... unfortunately, we didn't make it. Naturally, I was sad, especially for the athlete, because he's someone I really like and believe would help us. We tried everything within what we had identified and planned since the end of last season."
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England ambition
Back-to-back man of the match awards capped quite the debut England camp for Elliot Anderson during the international break. The Reds midfielder looked right at home for the Three Lions against Andorra and Serbia.
Boss Thomas Tuchel looked suitably impressed. And according to one pundit, the Reds star has probably already done enough to secure a seat on the plane for next year’s World Cup.
"I thought he was outstanding," Martin Keown told TNT Sports. “He has got happy feet in that midfield, he is tenacious, he gets up and down.
"He is someone who has gone under the radar a bit but he played very well for England Under-21s in the Euros in the summer, so he deserves the opportunity. He looks like a nailed-on now in that England team."
Ange’s task
One of Postecoglou’s first tasks as he gets his feet under the table is to figure out which members of his squad can adapt to his style of play. Former Australia international Mark Bosnich has hinted those decisions could lead to some difficult conversations.
Postecoglou has indicated he wants to implement his trademark attacking style, starting against the Swans in midweek. But ex-Manchester United and Aston Villa goalkeeper Bosnich has warned there will be some players with concerns about where they might fit in.
“The tactical side of Ange's new job will be fascinating,” he told Australian publication Nine. “His possession-based, high pressing style of football is the complete opposite to Nuno's successful counter-attacking approach.
“That will worry some players who know they aren't suited to Ange's system. Have we got a future here? He needs to be honest and fair with the players that he doesn't want to be there, because all you need is one or two players - especially powerful ones and big players in the team - to not be happy and that can spread like wildfire.”
What has impressed me recently
The way Postecoglou has come across in front of the media. He is all business and no messing - and there is nothing wrong with that. Of course, it will be on the pitch where he is judged but he is certainly saying all the right things.
Player with a point to prove
Expect plenty of changes against the Swans in midweek. Postecoglou suggested he is keen to give minutes to players who haven’t seen much game time. All will be eager to catch the boss’ eye.
Next up
The opportunity to start a cup run with a trip to face Swansea in the third round of the Carabao Cup. Kick-off on Wednesday night is at 8pm.
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