Sport

The blueprint of things to come? Steve Wright looks at the development of Garath McCleary from non-league prospect to Championship player. With financial uncertainties hanging…

With the first legs of play-off semi-finals coming up this Thursday and Friday, Seat Pitch takes a look at the four teams involved… Billy Davies…

Having adopted a midfield diamond for the past three games is it fair to say Nottingham Forest have two wins and a loss, despite of…

*Disclaimer: For any lawyers reading, this is entirely fictional…* Marco didn’t quite know what to expect when the whole restaurant was booked for lunch on…

It’s been a frustrating — and not unsurprising — week for Nottingham Forest. Despite months of chasing certain players, and Billy Davies’ declaration of the need for ‘four or five stellar signings’, there was no activity in the transfer market. None whatsoever. Zilch.

Waiting for England to prove me wrong, I held back on writing anything that might look foolish within days of posting. But it’s clear from their inept performance at the World Cup that something is seriously wrong in English football — from top to bottom.

If, like me, the pain of Tuesday night was too much to bear then you probably can’t even look at the football headlines let alone read the match reports. Nottingham Forest’s capitulation in a play-off semi-final AGAIN proves that there’s no such thing as third time lucky.

While the season is yet to conclude, and the play-offs still to come, it might seem early for retrospective. But before the finale of 2009/10 concludes, it’s worth remembering how far Nottingham Forest have come in the past 16 months.

The credit crunch might be old news but its effects are finally coming round to bite football where it hurts. As the Premier League approaches its 20th anniversary, the writing’s on the wall for the unsustainable practices of the past decade.