Oliver Glasner will spend the next few weeks running the rule over his Nottingham Forest squad ahead of the upcoming season.
The new Reds head coach has spoken about wanting to get to know his players as people, as well as assessing what they can do on the pitch. Most of his charges reported back for duty on Monday, while those who have recently been on international duty will be reunited with their teammates in the near future.
Time spent on the training ground will be invaluable for Glasner and Forest as the Austrian looks to implement his ideas. He has an idea of how he wants the team to play but is prepared to be flexible and tweak it to get the most out of the players he has at his disposal.
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“I have a vision in my head how I want to see us playing but this has to be aligned with the players we have and what the players are capable of,” Glasner said earlier this week. “If I ask a player to do something he doesn’t really feel confident with or he perhaps can’t do it well, he will lose his confidence. We want the players with confidence and playing in their best position to show how good they are.
“Of course I know the players and know their profile, but now it’s about getting to know them and getting to know their personality. We have a great group of players and great coaching staff, great people working around the team, so they will get the support and then it’s up to us to show good performances and play good football.”
Glasner’s preference during his time at Crystal Palace was to operate with a back three. In a change from what the Reds have been used to, it is expected he will go down that route Trentside.
In this system, the role of the wing-backs is key. Ola Aina and Neco Williams may well have their work cut out.
As Henry Swain, Palace reporter for Round Table, explained to the Nottingham Post: “His system relies on three strong ball-playing central defenders with wing-backs either side. These two players have the most demand on them in the entire system. It's a 5-2-2-1 out of possession and a 3-4-3 when attacking. The wing-backs are expected to be up with the front line when attacking but back supporting the defensive duties, too.”
As it stands, Jair Cunha, Nikola Milenkovic and Murillo would likely make up the three-man defence. Glasner does also have Morato, Zach Abbott and Tyler Bindon on the books while another centre-back is expected to be on the club’s shopping list.
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Luca Netz, Nicolo Savona, Eric da Silva Moreira and Omar Richards are the full-back options aside from Williams and Aina. With some departures among the current defensive contingent possible, there could yet also be a new full-back brought in.
As an alternative, Glasner could look at his wingers to potentially take up a wing-back role. One way or another, it seems Callum Hudson-Odoi, Dan Ndoye, Omari Hutchinson and Dilane Bakwa may well need to adapt their games to some degree.
Potential Forest XI (3-4-3): Sels; Jair, Milenkovic, Murillo; Aina, Sangare, Dominguez, Williams; Hutchinson, Wood, Gibbs-White.
The above line-up is based on players already on the books. However, Forest will hope to have a few new faces through the doors before the window closes on September 1.
Adding at least one midfielder is a priority, following the departure of Elliot Anderson to Manchester City. Nicolas Dominguez has been handed his former teammates’s No.8 shirt but it seems likely the Argentine will eventually have some fierce competition for a starting spot.
Plenty of potential targets have been considered as Anderson’s replacement. Lucas Bergvall, of Tottenham Hotspur, Celtic’s Arne Engels and Inter Milan’s Davide Frattesi are among the names doing the rounds.
In terms of possible full-back reinforcements, Forest have been linked with Fiorentina’s Dodo and reportedly had a £15m bid for Givairo Read knocked back by Feyenoord. Whether they try again for the latter remains to be seen amid suggestions the Dutch club want double that amount for the 20-year-old.
Potential Forest XI with summer signings (3-4-3): Sels; Jair, Milenkovic, Murillo; Dodo, Sangare, Bergvall, Williams; McAtee, Jesus, Gibbs-White.
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Nottingham Forest reporter Sarah Clapson
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