Nottingham Forest were thoroughly drab for the majority of their 1-0 defeat against Braga in Portugal.
The Reds were dragged down to Braga’s level in the opening 45 minutes, with the hosts looking happy to claim a point that kept them in the top eight from the first whistle.
The game didn’t get much better in the second half, with Morgan Gibbs-White missing another Europa League penalty and 54 seconds later, Ryan Yates putting through his own net.
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Sean Dyche once again handed minutes to a number of fringe players from the off, and just like they did at Wrexham, the changes stifled Forest.
During the commentary, former Liverpool and Real Madrid star Steve McManaman gave his verdict on one Nottingham Forest player who needs to do much more.
- READ MORE: Former Forest figure hails Ryan Yates
Steve McManaman says James McAtee needs to be fitter
McAtee hasn’t played much football at Forest, and it’s important to take that into consideration when it comes to handing him any critique.
As the game wore on, he did get better, winning the penalty that Forest missed through Gibbs-White, and it’s quite clear that he needs more time out on the pitch if he’s to truly get himself up to standard to be a Forest regular.
McManaman thinks the player is clearly lacking in something and actually doesn’t think he’s fit enough to be a regular at the moment.
He said live on TNT Sports: “It’s probably a bit of both. He needs to play more, his fitness levels need to be higher, but you don’t get that without playing. Could he drop down and play some under-21s football? Maybe, but his manager might not want him to do that. It’s a difficult one when you’re not playing, but you’re still needed in the squad.”
McAtee needs a loan away from Forest
It’s hard to be too critical of McAtee, as this was one of his better Forest performances to date, although the bar had been set pretty low.
The midfielder needs regular minutes for the simple reason that, as McManaman said, he’s lacking fitness and he won’t get that match sharpness from training alone.
McAtee was signed for a lot of money, and although he did look disappointed when he was substituted, he can take heart from some of the things he did in this match.
A loan this month would be ideal, but with Gibbs-White somewhat out of sorts as well, it would be a little bit risky to let the squad’s other number 10 out on loan.
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