Nottingham Forest stars have jetted off all over the world with the third international break of the season taking centre stage.
It’s quite remarkable that domestic football breaks three times in the first half of the season.
For Forest, it does offer a chance to take stock and reset following a 3-1 loss against Newcastle on Sunday.
Nuno Espirito Santo hailed Murillo at the weekend after he bagged his first Forest goal against the Magpies.
That was as good as it got though, with Forest unable to contain a rampant Newcastle in the second half at the City Ground.
Nicolas Dominguez explained after the game that the squad aren’t too downbeat and that’s the way it should be.
There have been some real positive performances in the first 11 games from a Forest perspective and one defeat doesn’t undo all of that hard work.
Felipe sends emotional message to Murillo after Brazil call-up
Felipe called time on his playing career in the summer after a season of struggle during 2023/24.
The central defender couldn’t get himself fit enough to get on the pitch very often and injuries caught up with him.
However, he clearly had a positive influence on Murillo during the year they had together behind the scenes.
Murillo was praised by Morgan Gibbs-White after winning his first international call-up and now Felipe has filmed an emotional video for him.
He said on a YouTube video posted by Forest: “What’s up my brother, your time has come. Thank God, bro.
“I told you your time would come and to wait and be prepared. Now, it’s time to enjoy it and work even harder.
“Put some great work in and I hope it’s the first of many call-ups. I can feel it, we can feel it.
“There will be a piece of me there with you brother. I’m so happy for you, this is just the start.”
Murillo is going right to the top with or without Forest
In order for Forest to keep hold of players like Murillo the club has to secure European qualification in the coming years.
They are the tournaments that players want to test themselves in and Murillo won’t want another relegation battle this season.
Forest have made a positive start to the 2024/25 campaign and that should at least see the defender remain with the club until the summer.
Beyond that, however, it’s going to be hard for Forest to keep hold of players like Murillo..
In the future, the aim has to be European qualification anyway and if the club can do that, Evangelos Marinakis will feel far more comfortable when it comes to keeping good players at the City Ground.
For now, Murillo will be focused on winning his first cap and if he does, that might just add another £10 million to his valuation.
Receive a digest of our best Nottingham Forest content each week direct to your mailbox
