Nottingham Forest are busy sweating on their Premier League survival aspirations, and the fitness of Chris Wood might be integral.
It’s been claimed that Wood might be fit to return in mid-April, but contrasting reports are whipping fans into a bit of a frenzy at the moment.
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Wood scored 20 times in the Premier League last season as Forest finished seventh, and this season he’s been sorely missed, having been injured since October.
Now, ahead of Forest trying to overturn a 1-0 first-leg deficit against FC Midtjylland, Vitor Pereira has been quizzed on the fitness of Wood.
Chris Wood arrives ahead of Burnley vs Nottingham Forest
Photo by Nigel Roddis/Getty Images
Vitor Pereira has included Chris Wood in some training
It would appear as though Pereira is going to push Wood more than he normally pushes his injured players, as he knows Forest need him.
Wood has been sorely missed spearheading the Forest attack, with Igor Jesus scoring just two Premier League goals and Taiwo Awoniyi grabbing one.
Now, Pereira has cleared up the reports this week regarding Wood’s fitness, and it seems that he’s going to be back on the training ground in some capacity in the coming weeks.
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He said in his pre-Midtjylland press conference: “I don’t want to push him up, but I think he will be able to help us in the last few games of the season. He is important for the group because he has quality. He scores goals, and he has the personality to help us.
“I usually don’t push the players to come earlier, but today he started the warm-up with the team. I really hope we can have him for the last games because he’s an important player.”
Wood is not only a solid Premier League striker but also a good influence on the younger players inside the dressing room.
Forest need all the leaders they can get in this current predicament, and now, the Reds will hope to see Wood strutting his stuff on the pitch after the international break.
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