Lewis McGugan believes Nottingham Forest head coach Steve Cooper is fighting a losing battle to transform Jonjo Shelvey. The 31-year-old committed a disastrous error during Saturday’s 2-0 defeat over Aston Villa and it cost Forest dearly.
The Reds made it nine without a win with another pretty turbulent second-half performance at Villa Park. For 45 minutes, the Reds did a sound job defensively and the home side never looked like scoring during the opening exchanges.
Shelvey signed for the Reds from Newcastle United in January. It was something of a shock capture made by the Reds but with injuries stacking up, Forest decided to sign the experienced Premier League performer.
McGugan joined the Garibaldi Red Podcast this week to discuss Saturday’s game. He believes that Cooper has his work cut out to try and transform the fortunes of Shelvey at this stage of his career.
He said: “Jonjo is what Jonjo is. He will never change and he never has from when he made his debut. I’ve played against him and he will always put the ball at risk. At times he will look unbelievable, he will make a pass that nobody else sees and he will win you the game. But at times, he will give it away.
MORE FOREST STORIES
McGugan believes Cooper is fighting a losing battle with Shelvey
McGugan made some outstanding points on this week’s edition of the Garibaldi Red Podcast. When it comes to Shelvey he really did hit the nail on the head.
The man who served Forest for a number of years knows what it takes to do the business for Forest. McGugan should have played Premier League football during his career and he was a magnificent talent.
Shelvey appears to have already lost the trust of the fan base. Plenty aren’t keen for him to play for the club once again and hope that Cooper makes a big call on the 31-year-old.
However, that could be problematic. Forest gave Shelvey a two-and-a-half-year contract and it’s fair to say that he won’t be getting paid peanuts at the City Ground.