Nottingham Forest legend Stan Collymore has criticised Chris Wood for his form since he signed for the Reds. The striker swapped Newcastle for Forest during the January transfer window.
Wood initially signed on loan until the end of the 2022/23 campaign. He’s already started the three games necessary for that loan deal to become permanent and he will be back next season.
The 31-year-old has scored once during his time at the City Ground. He fired home a late equaliser against Manchester City in a result that saw the Reds stun the champions.
Wood was a surprise signing by the Reds. They moved quickly in January to sign another striker after some bad news on the groin injury sustained by Taiwo Awoniyi.
Collymore hasn’t been overly happy with the striker just yet. He doesn’t believe that the man with over 50 Premier League goals to his name has done the job he’s been signed to do just yet.
He told Caught Offside: “I watched Chris Wood play against Everton last week and I was really disappointed. The rules of the game have been tweaked in favour of centre-forwards – they’re encouraged to hold the ball up with their back to the goal before turning and running, so there’s an obvious need for strong physical players. I haven’t seen any of that from Wood at Forest so far. “
Collymore criticised Wood but there is more to come
Collymore knows all about being the physical presence in the attack. As a result, he’s in a perfect position to be able to demand more from an underperforming player.
It’s perhaps a bit too early to be throwing critique at Wood, however. He’s come to a new club and has been often utilised on the left-hand side of the attack – a position that he’s not used to.
Wood could come good for the Reds. Ultimately, however, Steve Cooper has to start playing him in a position that he’s more familiar with through the middle of the pitch.
If he doesn’t do that soon, the experiment will just prove to have been a complete and utter waste of time.