Martin O’Neill an upgrade on former Nottingham Forest boss in more ways than one

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Martin O’Neill > Ron Atkinson.

I think we’re all in agreement there, aren’t we?

Affinity with the club.

Tactical acumen.

An ability to sit in the right dugout.

The current Reds boss ticks all of the boxes.

And, as it happens, it appears he is also a welcome upgrade on the training field from one of many predecessors on Trentside.

It is remarkable to think that 20 years have passed since ‘Big Ron’ prowled the Forest touchline.

Time flies when you’re having fun.

And, apparently, when you’re not.

Two decades outside of the top tier was unthinkable when the Reds last slipped through the trapdoor.

Ambition

O’Neill is the man charged with the task of delivering a long-awaited return to the Promised Land.

He has vowed to make good on that remit or walk away, with his ambition matching that of those on the terraces.

Results will dictate whether he succeeds in that mission, and he has an important role to play.

On and off the field.

It is his selections which will ultimately determine whether or not Premier League football is returned to a revamped City Ground in the years to come.

And it is the work he carries out behind the scenes which will have the Reds squad sink or swim.

How much of a role he plays on the training ground remains to be seen but, as mentioned, it is safe to assume that he will be an upgrade on Atkinson.

O’Neill is, after all, a two-time European Cup winner and a man who knows all about the art of wing play.

Atkinson was also a wing-half in his day – but at Oxford, not the Olympic Stadium.

Former Forest defender Alan Rogers has told the Daily Mail of an ex-boss: “I remember Ron Atkinson at Nottingham Forest. He was a character. He came with this briefcase every day. I broke into it once.

“We thought it was all the secrets of a football world but there was a hairdryer and a gold American Express card.

“He used to join in training. He couldn’t move. We were a Premier League team with a 60-year-old running down the wing.”

Bling

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Atkinson celebrated a notable birthday during his time at the City Ground, in March 1999.

Even hitting 60 with the Reds puts him seven years younger than the man currently at the helm.

You do, however, get the feeling that O’Neill could put on more of a display if pushed into action.

Rogers does not reveal whether Atkinson waddled down the flanks with sunglasses on, bling bracelets and gold rings in tow.

It is not a difficult image to conjure up!

Neither is one of Forest’s squad of that time looking on in bemusement.

Times have changed.

For the better in a lot of ways.

The Reds may no longer be a top tier outfit, but the right pieces are being put in place to ensure that there is no repeat of the circus acts of the past.