Pre-season is rarely pretty at the best of times and Nottingham Forest are certainly making hard work of theirs.
The Reds’ summer outings so far have been short on entertainment value as well as goals. Following their 1-0 loss at Birmingham City, Nuno Espirito Santo’s side have found the back of the net just once in five friendlies to date.
They have registered three 0-0 draws and fallen to two defeats. Results and performances are largely irrelevant at this stage, of course, but they do point to a few wrinkles in need of being ironed out.
Forest have two weeks to go before their Premier League opener at home to Brentford on August 17. With the clock ticking, Sarah Clapson looks at some of the big talking points from Saturday’s game in the West Midlands, a tribute to the Reds' late, great European Cup goal hero Trevor Francis...
Goal-shy Reds
Chris Wood insisted otherwise after the final whistle at St Andrew’s @ Knighthead Park, but Forest’s lack of goals in pre-season is at least of slight concern. It was something they struggled with towards the end of last term, and there is work to be done to ensure the issue doesn’t carry over into the 2025/26 campaign.
It took until the half-hour mark for the visitors to register a meaningful effort this time out. They fared better in the second half but didn’t exactly pepper the Blues’ goal.
Pre-season rust and a focus on fitness explains some of that. But it would be good for confidence and momentum, if nothing else, if the Reds can bag a few in their remaining two friendlies.
Igor Jesus showed a real willingness to work hard on Saturday and has demonstrated good movement in his appearances so far. By all accounts, he has looked very sharp in training. Too often, though, he wasn’t found against the Blues and didn’t get a great deal of service.
On paper, the attacking combination of Dan Ndoye, Morgan Gibbs-White and Callum Hudson-Odoi has fantastic potential. Once it clicks, it could be mouthwatering.
Ndoye had managed only one training session with his new team-mates prior to Saturday, so it is perhaps not surprising it didn’t happen straight away. There were glimpses, though, such as a lovely move involving Gibbs-White and Jesus that ended with Ndoye hitting the bar.
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Nottingham Forest pre-season supplement
It promises to be an exciting season ahead for Nottingham Forest.
The 2024/25 campaign proved to be a special one for Nuno Espirito Santo’s side. But it could get even better for the Reds this time around.
European football will be coming to the City Ground for the first time in three decades. It will be a whole new continental adventure for Forest, and they will be eager to give it a good go.
It all means there is a lot to look forward to this coming season. With that in mind, we have produced our Nottingham Forest 2025/26 Kick-Off special, our brilliant guide to the new season.
Our reporter Sarah Clapson will waltz you through what to expect from the Reds this coming season, turn the spotlight on Nuno, run the rule over one of Forest’s key men and take a look at the club’s transfer business. Our club-by-club guide will give you the lowdown on Forest’s Premier League rivals, while you will also be able to test your knowledge with our Premier League quiz.
We will also take a look at the summer’s biggest signings in the division, check out each ground and study the managers - new and old. With a full fixture list, Nottingham Forest 2025/26 Kick-Off will get you in perfect match shape in time for the Reds’ opening day curtain-raiser at home to Brentford on August 17.
Priced £3.50, pre-order your copy now from our online store and get it delivered direct to your door.
Transfer activity
The Reds haven’t been overly busy in the transfer market so far, but they appear to have bought well. Ndoye should prove to be a fine acquisition and is said to be genuinely delighted to have signed for the club - his enthusiasm in recent social media videos posted by Forest is testament to that.
Jesus and Jair Cunha have had a bit more time to settle in since arriving from Botafogo but are still in the early stages of getting to know their new team-mates. The former’s runs weren’t always picked up, while the latter was asked to play out of position on Saturday.
Jair did a decent job at right-back. Much like Morato on the opposite side, though, he was unable to get forward to the same extent as Ola Aina or Neco Williams can.
Aina missed out at the weekend due to a slight knock while Williams was an unused substitute. Strengthening at full-back is a priority for the Reds, and Nuno’s team selection underlined their need in that department.
Some players given minutes - such as Carlos Miguel, Jota Silva and Omar Richards - might have moved on by the end of the window. Nuno’s potential first-choice XI looks strong but the squad depth isn’t there yet.
Flexible Forest
Nuno has used pre-season to try a few things. As Wood explained afterwards, Forest want to have a few strings to their bow in 2025/26.
Last term, they proved very effective at playing a certain way and in a certain formation. But to keep progressing, they need an element of versatility.
That will be particularly important in Europe. Whichever UEFA competition Nuno’s side end up being in, they will come up against myriad tests and challenges. Navigating them will require nous and flexibility.
Not everything the Reds have tried this summer has come off. Pre-season can be about finding out what doesn’t work as much as what does.
Playing a back line of centre-backs - in Jair, Nikola Milenkovic, Murillo and Morato - is unlikely to happen when it comes to the real thing. But playing a back five, or playing Jesus and Wood together - as has also happened in pre-season - might.
“We’re trying to work on other things we can add to our armoury throughout the season,” Wood said. “We don’t want to be one-dimensional and play the same way every single time. We want to add different things.
“We’ve got some more games coming up. We’re going to try different things and try to exploit teams in different ways.”
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Season countdown
Ask almost anyone at Forest and they will tell you just how important last summer’s training camp in Spain proved to be. It was the cornerstone on which an excellent campaign was built, and that was because of the relationships forged and unity strengthened as much as any training ground work done. With any luck, the recent trip to Portugal will be just as effective in the long run.
There is a fine balance to be struck in pre-season. No team wants to go into the campaign undercooked; equally no side wants to have peaked too soon. Fitness and sharpness need to be built up, and minutes need to be shared around.
Some players have looked good in pre-season. Ibrahim Sangare has been playing well, while Jesus has generally looked lively and shown he will work tirelessly.
This coming campaign is about building on the foundations already in place and continuing to progress. It is not going to be easy, and Nuno will be aware of the task ahead.
With two weeks to go and City Ground friendlies against Fiorentina and Al Qadsiah to come, the Reds still have work to do. But that will still be the case whatever happens on the opening day against the Bees. They will not be the finished article on day one.
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