Gary Neville thinks Nuno Espirito Santo is about to recall two attacking players at Nottingham Forest. The Portuguese head coach will take charge of his first game at home to Bournemouth on Saturday.
Neville was at Forest on Friday night to watch a 2-0 defeat to Tottenham which proved to be Steve Cooper’s final game in charge.
The Reds have a five-point cushion between them and the relegation zone and the team are in need of a win. Espirito Santo is in a job after Cooper won just one of the previous 13 matches in his role at Forest.
Forest made the decision to sack Cooper and appoint Espirito Santo on Tuesday evening. It was left to Ross Wilson to tell Cooper he’d been sacked at Forest, with Evangelos Marinakis feeling that enough was enough.
Neville thinks two forwards could return to Forest team
On Friday night, Neville watched on as Forest went with Morgan Gibbs-White and Anthony Elanga in attack. It was an approach that the pundit doesn’t think will serve the club particularly well going forward.
He believes that Chris Wood and Divock Origi could both have a part to play under the new manager.
Neville and Jamie Carragher had a bit of a disagreement on the Stick to Football podcast. Carragher said that as much as he loves Divock Origi, he doesn’t think he’s a good footballer.
Neville is of the opinion, however, that he can still be doing a job for Forest at this moment in time.
He told the Stick to Football podcast: “I thought having Wood and Origi would have been a greater option. I know they’re not great players but hear me out.
“If you are Tottenham’s centre-halves and you are playing against Gibbs-White and Elanga. They’re not forwards. I don’t care they are quick, if you are not a centre-forward and you are playing there it’s a struggle. It’s a tough position to play.
“It’s the hardest position to play. Well, it’s the hardest position but goalkeeper. The idea that you put Elanga up front because he’s quick, or Gibbs-White up front. The idea of having two centre-forwards up there who are experienced and are a target and could be a point.
“I think Nuno for me would bring one of those two in.”
Espirito Santo’s first selection will be fascinating
On the same podcast, Carragher mentioned that Cooper had told him about how hard it was to manage such a big squad at Forest. That problem won’t be solved overnight and now Espirito Santo has the same concern.
Having been out of the Premier League bubble for a while, however, it’s surely one that the Forest head coach will relish. Now it remains to be seen what sort of team he will pick first up.
Neville does have a point and although Origi has barely played for Forest this season, perhaps he could be an option. He signed in the summer on transfer deadline day on loan from AC Milan but he’s just never got going.
Wood signed for Forest in last January’s transfer window. He cost the club around £15 million and he’s scored four goals during his time at Forest.
Neville does make a good point. It’s hard to imagine opposition teams being too scared of Forest when one of their strikers doesn’t start and it would add a focal point to the team.
Espirito Santo is an experienced head coach and now it will be fascinating to discover what team he picks on Saturday against Bournemouth, given the wealth of players at his disposal.
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