Nottingham Forest are facing a real fight to pull themselves clear of the Championship relegation zone and it looks as though changes are required.
Chris Hughton has typically remained loyal to his players, although back-to-back defeats to Barnsley and Bournemouth need to prompt change.
The Forest boss has paired Scott McKenna with Tobias Figueiredo in all nine of the games he has overseen in charge.
Scotland international McKenna was probably the one player to emerge from last night’s game with any credit.
The problem firmly lies with the player currently operating alongside him at the heart of the defence.
When Figueiredo was first called upon by Hughton it seemed he had regained some confidence.
The 26-year-old had seemed like one of many players who had taken last season’s collapse hard, suffering a severe hangover that he struggled to shift.
Now it seems as though, Figueiredo is back in that rut. Just three minutes had lapsed last night when he switched off allowing Junior Stanislas in behind him to open the scoring.
Forest have Loic Mbe Soh waiting patiently in the wings and perhaps the time has come to hand him the chance to impress.
When Joe Worrall returns he looks nailed on to win his place back in the side. There is lots of football to be played before then, however, and Forest need points.
There was some suggestion in the summer that Figueiredo was keen on a return to Portugal and in the short-term perhaps a transfer might take place.
Certainly on current form, it wouldn’t be any surprise if the club opted to not stand in his way of any desire he may have to leave.
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Something is clearly bothering Figueiredo and it does seem like the right time to make a change at the back.
Mbe Soh arrived from PSG in the summer for a fee that could eventually rise to £4.5 million, according to L’Equipe.
The 19-year-old has played twice for the Reds and did a decent job in both games he was called upon.
Fans would probably cut a younger player more slack as long as they could see signs of improvement.
Given the recent form of Figueiredo, now seems like an ideal time to utilise the former FIFA Golden Boy nominee alongside McKenna.
Mbe Soh is of similar style to the former Aberdeen man and in the two games he’s played so far, he’s looked useful at playing out from the back.
The France under-20 star has impressed Hughton in training. At the start of this month, he told Nottinghamshire Live: “I’ve been really pleased with Mbe Soh in training. He’s probably been a bit unfortunate.”
That will offer the youngster hope of a chance soon. With a tough run of games and Forest now starting to concede goals that could be prevented, his opportunity could be imminent.
Something, or someone, has to give for the Reds.
Hughton would be wise to make a change in defence after last night’s disappointing display.
For Mbe Soh a Forest shirt could be there to grasp with both hands.
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