Nottingham Forest have signed Dan Ndoye as Anthony Elanga’s natural replacement, but Nuno Espírito Santo’s plans for next season might make his spot in the team less obvious.
After Espírito Santo raised doubts about Johan Bakayoko, Ndoye became Forest’s top target for the right side, managing to agree a deal with Bologna to secure the Swiss international.
Arriving at the City Ground on Thursday, Ndoye expressed his excitement about playing with Morgan Gibbs-White, a partnership that should blossom given how the Englishman connected well with Elanga last season.
However, there are doubts about Forest’s tactical setup as clubs looked to have figured out the Reds’ counterattacking system, leading to Espírito Santo plotting a new set-up in pre-season.
Nuno Espírito Santo plans new tactic for Nottingham Forest
Ndoye is a natural fit in Nuno’s 4-2-3-1, operating from the right and possessing the pace to stretch teams on the counter, but this style may not be the route that Forest go down this season.
According to John Percy in The Telegraph, Espírito Santo’s experimentation in the opening pre-season fixtures is no coincidence, as the Forest manager looks to change the narrative over his style of play.
Percy said: “Averaging just under 41 per cent possession last season, Nuno realises that is unsustainable. Dreams of the Champions League faded late in the season, with only two wins from the final eight league games, and there is an acceptance that most opponents could have figured Nuno’s team out.
“Telegraph Sport understands the coach wants his reshaped team to control more of the ball, to dominate matches and be more flexible. Playing with three at the back is an option, and Nuno is also considering using two forwards as opposed to just having Chris Wood on his own.”
Of course, controlling possession will come from central areas, but for Ndoye, the switch to two forwards will change his role in the team in particular.
There’s a chance he could play as one of the central strikers, but if he’s out wide, the expectation will be to potentially alternate with Igor Jesus, who could hold the key to the success of this new system.
Igor Jesus will be crucial to Nottingham Forest’s new system
Jesus impressed Forest fans on his debut against Fulham, playing alongside Chris Wood but also retaining the freedom to drop deep and float around the attacking areas.
It’s also been said that Jesus has been starring in training which could really push Espírito Santo to go ahead with this two-striker system, influencing Ndoye’s role.
Two strikers, with Gibbs-White and Ndoye supporting, would be an incredibly attacking system for Nuno to deploy. It’s easy to imagine Gibbs-White starring in a role that allows him to drift wide and centrally, but it would ask more of Ndoye than Elanga was ever expected to do.
Therefore, dovetailing with Jesus could be the best way to deploy Ndoye, allowing him to stretch the play when the Brazilian drops in and vice versa.
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