Dion Dublin and James Perch think Nottingham Forest star deserves England call-up with Morgan Gibbs-White

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Nottingham Forest were beaten 2-1 by Fulham at Craven Cottage on Saturday as the Reds clung on to their third-place position in the Premier League table.

In truth, the Reds weren’t at the races. Forest could have been beaten by more had it not been for the scintillating form of Matz Sels between the posts.

Chris Wood bagged his 18th goal of the season against Fulham. However, that came between strikes for Emile Smith Rowe and Calvin Bassey who bolstered the Cottagers in their quest to qualify for Europe.

This was merely a bad day for Forest and there is no need for an overreaction. The squad hasn’t all of a sudden become poor and there are still some seriously talented players within the ranks.

• READ MORE: Nottingham Forest player ratings vs Fulham

Dion Dublin and James Perch share same Elliot Anderson view

After such a brilliant campaign for Forest, it’s only natural that some very positive comments have been made regarding the Reds and some of the players within the squad.

Next month, Thomas Tuchel will pick his first England squad for games against Albania and Latvia – with Elliot Anderson and Morgan Gibbs-White hoping to get the call-up.

Anderson has represented Scotland and England at under-21 level but he’s now pledged his allegiance to England with the player hoping to impress Tuchel ahead of the next round of fixtures.

Dion Dublin is a huge fan of Anderson and he’s in no doubt as to whether or not the player will earn an England call in the future.

Dublin told Football Focus: “I think he (Tuchel) has to look at him. We’ve just seen in those clips that he’s one of those players that Tuchel will be thinking he’s got to watch a little bit more.

“He’s the one that’s going to open the door and then shut it at the other end, he ticks a lot of boxes and why wouldn’t you look at him.”

Former Forest utility man Perch agrees and he also believes that Anderson will be banging down Tuchel’s door when he picks his first squad in March.

He told BBC Radio Nottingham: “I think he’s a top, top midfielder and one of the best English players in that position but right now he’ll just be concentrating on playing as many games as he can for Forest, doing as well as he can for Forest and seeing where that takes him.

“He knows the more he performs at the level he is doing now he will be getting called up for the England squad.”

Elliot Anderson stats 2024/25

Anderson would be a brilliant addition to the England squad and it would cap a fine few months for the Forest man who wasn’t always considered first choice when he first came to the club.

The 22-year-old has been a mainstay in the middle of the park for Forest in recent months. It’s been a case of Anderson and one other from central midfield and he’s thrived under the responsibility.

Whether Anderson will earn a call-up next month remains to be seen. Although he’s been in good form, Tuchel might go for more tried and tested options when he names his first group of players.

On current form, however, the Three Lions incumbent won’t be able to ignore him forever. As Perch rightly says, Anderson will simply be happy to be playing regularly at the moment and the rest will happen naturally if he continues on an upward trajectory.