Nottingham Forest have started the 2024/25 Premier League campaign exceptionally well and there is real optimism around Trentside.
Forest added to their ranks all over the park during the summer and the energy levels have clearly risen in the team.
On Monday night, Forest defeated Crystal Palace 1-0 at the City Ground and currently sit eighth in the Premier League.
There were several top-performing players against Palace despite the game not really going down as a classic in the top flight.
Chris Wood was praised by Ally McCoist after his fifth goal in eight matches this season and he’s picked up where he left off during 2023/24.
It was another strong performance from Matz Sels between the posts too as he made several top saves to preserve a clean sheet for Forest.
With the season now eight games old, player performances can start to be analysed in a little more detail and Forest have one particular player catching the eye.
Nottingham Forest player is dribbling better than Luis Diaz
Last season, the dribbling statistics were largely dominated by Callum Hudson-Odoi when it came to a Forest perspective.
Although the player is still a top dribbler, it would appear as though Elliot Anderson has now overtaken the man signed for £3 million from Chelsea.
Anderson was praised by Adrian Durham for his performance against Palace and he starred in the number 10 role vacated by the injured and suspended Morgan Gibbs-White.
The Other 14 showcase on X that Anderson is currently at 60% in terms of successful dribbles when in possession of the ball this season.
Furthermore, FBRef shows some information alongside the players from the top six clubs in the division and he’s outperforming Luis Diaz when it comes to dribbling.
He’s down at 42% when it comes to successful dribbles, despite Liverpool enjoying a quality start to this season.
Anderson is going to show true colours at Forest
The 21-year-old didn’t overly excite the fan base when he signed for Forest in the summer but that was more down to a lack of game time at Newcastle.
Anderson is proving a great piece of business though and hopefully, he can realise his true potential during his time at the City Ground.
| Position | Team | Played MP | Won W | Drawn D | Lost L | For GF | Against GA | Diff GD | Points Pts |
| 7 |  TottenhamTottenham | 8 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 18 | 9 | 9 | 13 |
| 8 |  Nottm ForestNottingham Forest | 8 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 8 | 6 | 2 | 13 |
| 9 |  NewcastleNewcastle | 8 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 8 | 8 | 0 | 12 |
On Monday he was fantastic for the Reds and it certainly gives Nuno Espirito Santo some food for thought ahead of Friday night.
Gibbs-White might not be fit to play again and if he isn’t, Anderson is the obvious choice to play in the number 10 position again.
The future looks bright for Forest and Anderson looks like a player who could prove to be the heartbeat of the club for years to come.
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