Proper club™. Glad they're staying up.
Nottingham Forest | Cooper sacked, Nuno takes charge
- Thread starter Samid
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In the latest episode of the United Hour Podcast, Nik and Imran hold a long overdue conversation about United's awful league form with 1 win in 7. They discuss a disappointing draw at Bournemouth, a not so disappointing draw against Liverpool and a crushing defeat at Chelsea - Is time nearly over for Erik Ten Hag?
Then in a special second half of the pod, Nik welcomes Natalie ( https://twitter.com/natalie_17) to discuss the fortunes of Manchester United Women as they booked a place in the FA Cup Final after a historic first ever win vs. Chelsea.
Wisdom of not binning the manager has paid off.
He was playing wide left for most of those previous 25 I think.
First of all, feck you
Secondly yes that was a great day and I shamelessly celebrated reaching 40 points long into the night.
Awoniyi is a decent striker to have up top. Not technically good enough to play for one of the big teams, but his strength and work-rate are impressive. People underestimate how much it helps to have your striker busting a gut, tracking back, closing down, putting pressure on the opposition's defenders. Martial does more or less half the work.
I am not saying he's good enough for us but the performances he has put in of late have been better than Martial's.
Maybe that's more an indication of how poor we are up front these days. Wout and Martial are just nowhere near good enough to lead the line.
I am not saying he's good enough for us but the performances he has put in of late have been better than Martial's.
Maybe that's more an indication of how poor we are up front these days. Wout and Martial are just nowhere near good enough to lead the line.
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No doubt the Forest story of the season is our transfer activity. Thankfully it paid off so i thought I’d write a post which will be of zero interest to anyone else and list and rate them.
In the order they came through door - our 30/63/eleventy seven/247 Scattergun journeymen signings:
1 Taiwo Awoniyi 17m Union Berlin CF - The first through the door and become our record signing. 5 in 3 at the end of the season bodes well for next season. Knocks CB’s about for fun. 4/5
2 Dean Henderson Loan GK Great Keeper, crap distribution. 4/5
3 Guilian Biancone 5m Troyes CB/RB. Looked decent in the early stages of the league cup then did his cruciate in training. Just getting back on grass. 3/5
4 Moussa Niakhate £8.7m Mainz CB Another who’s season was marred by an early injury. He busted a gut to get back for the last couple of months. Great CB plus causes chaos with his long throws 4/5
5 Omar Richards £8.5m Bayern LB Some of our signings I completely forgot they existed. This fella, I’m not sure does exist. Injured in pre-season, never been seen since. 0/5
6 Nico Williams £16m Liverpool RB. Has blown hot and cold before hitting form in April - until Brennan accidentally booted him in the head - season over. 3/5
7 Wayne Hennessey Free Burnley GK If we’d have stuck with him when Henderson got injured we’d have been relegated. 1/5 Bomb Squad
8 Brandon Aguilera MF One for the future - went straight out on loan a bit meh.
9 Harry Toffolo £4m Huddersfield LB Came as a job lot with O’Brien. Struggled at first but the last couple of months has looked more comfortable. A decent backup. 3/5
10 Lewis O’Brien £6m Huddersfield MF. It’s not worked for Lewis. Lots of huff and puff but little end product. On loan in the MLS currently. He may get another chance. 2/5
11 Jesse Lingard Free Unattached MF It’s been a joy having him at the club. I don’t really care how much he gets, he turns up supports the club, helps the youngsters out and is a team player. Was hitting form before the WC happened, then got injured just after, when we needed players so lost his chance. 2/5 + 1 for being a good lad.
12 Orel Mangala £12.7m MF Stuttgart - A great buy and first choice DM 4/5
13 Emmanuel Dennis £20m LW Watford - A terrible buy for the money. He’s got a bit of an attitude problem and thinks he’s better than he is. 2/5 (for the 3 goals) Bomb squad.
14 Cheikhou Kouyate Free Palace MF We needed his experience in midfield early in the season when teams were running though us for fun. Unlucky to get injured at the WC. A good backup 3/5
15 Remo Frueler £9m Atalanta MF We bought Remo when it became clear we weren’t getting Jimmy Garner. Steady, runs his heart out but ultimately limited. 3/5
16 Morgan Gibbs-White £42m Wolves FW The most improved player. Oh how people laughed at us paying upto £42m for a Wolves reserve. Next stop the England squad. 5/5
17 Hwang Ui-Jo £4m Bordeaux CF The worst buy of the lot - loaned to Olympiakos who quickly got rid of him. 0/5 Bomb squad team captain.
18 Renan Lodi Loan Atletico Madrid LB Has to be the first signing of the Summer. A brilliant signing after a shaky start. 4/5
19 Willy Boly Free Wolves CB Willy was our first choice CB until he got injured. Great experience and really helped Joe Worrall get to grips with the Prem. 4/5
20 Loic Bade Loan Rennes CB He came, he saw, his got his loan cancelled “shrug” 0/5
21 Josh Bowler £4m Blackpool LW Great in the Champ with Blackpool, he went on loan to Olympiakos who sent him back. Went back to Blackpool on loan and got relegated. 0/5 Bomb-squad
22 Serge Aurier Free RB Mad Serge, what warrior. Absolutely love the bloke, though he does drop the odd ricket. 4/5
23 Adnan Kanuric Free GK Who?
Winter Window
24 Gustavo Scarpa Free Palmeiras MF Brazilian skateboarding, Rubics cube solving, headband wearing cult hero - got injured 3/5
25 Danilo £16m Palmeiras MF The star signing, future Brazilian superstar in waiting. Sorry United, he’s on a 5 year contract so dig deep. 5/5
26 Chris Woods undisclosed Newcastle CF At least he scored against Citeh and then thankfully got injured. Pointless and hopefully bomb squad 1/5
27 Keylor Navas Loan PSG GK Who’d have thought? Keylor Navas at little old Forest! Loses a point for getting beaten at his near post twice against Brentford. Gets it back for the outrageous shithousing Vs Arsenal 5/5
28 Jon Jo Shelvey Undisclosed Newcastle MF Taxi for Voldemort 1/5 Bomb squad I hope.
29 Felipe undisclosed Atletico Madrid CB Feck off VVD, there’s a new Rolls Royce in town. A pleasure to watch 5/5
30 Andrew Ayew Free LW Why? 1/5 Bomb squad.
In the order they came through door - our 30/63/eleventy seven/247 Scattergun journeymen signings:
1 Taiwo Awoniyi 17m Union Berlin CF - The first through the door and become our record signing. 5 in 3 at the end of the season bodes well for next season. Knocks CB’s about for fun. 4/5
2 Dean Henderson Loan GK Great Keeper, crap distribution. 4/5
3 Guilian Biancone 5m Troyes CB/RB. Looked decent in the early stages of the league cup then did his cruciate in training. Just getting back on grass. 3/5
4 Moussa Niakhate £8.7m Mainz CB Another who’s season was marred by an early injury. He busted a gut to get back for the last couple of months. Great CB plus causes chaos with his long throws 4/5
5 Omar Richards £8.5m Bayern LB Some of our signings I completely forgot they existed. This fella, I’m not sure does exist. Injured in pre-season, never been seen since. 0/5
6 Nico Williams £16m Liverpool RB. Has blown hot and cold before hitting form in April - until Brennan accidentally booted him in the head - season over. 3/5
7 Wayne Hennessey Free Burnley GK If we’d have stuck with him when Henderson got injured we’d have been relegated. 1/5 Bomb Squad
8 Brandon Aguilera MF One for the future - went straight out on loan a bit meh.
9 Harry Toffolo £4m Huddersfield LB Came as a job lot with O’Brien. Struggled at first but the last couple of months has looked more comfortable. A decent backup. 3/5
10 Lewis O’Brien £6m Huddersfield MF. It’s not worked for Lewis. Lots of huff and puff but little end product. On loan in the MLS currently. He may get another chance. 2/5
11 Jesse Lingard Free Unattached MF It’s been a joy having him at the club. I don’t really care how much he gets, he turns up supports the club, helps the youngsters out and is a team player. Was hitting form before the WC happened, then got injured just after, when we needed players so lost his chance. 2/5 + 1 for being a good lad.
12 Orel Mangala £12.7m MF Stuttgart - A great buy and first choice DM 4/5
13 Emmanuel Dennis £20m LW Watford - A terrible buy for the money. He’s got a bit of an attitude problem and thinks he’s better than he is. 2/5 (for the 3 goals) Bomb squad.
14 Cheikhou Kouyate Free Palace MF We needed his experience in midfield early in the season when teams were running though us for fun. Unlucky to get injured at the WC. A good backup 3/5
15 Remo Frueler £9m Atalanta MF We bought Remo when it became clear we weren’t getting Jimmy Garner. Steady, runs his heart out but ultimately limited. 3/5
16 Morgan Gibbs-White £42m Wolves FW The most improved player. Oh how people laughed at us paying upto £42m for a Wolves reserve. Next stop the England squad. 5/5
17 Hwang Ui-Jo £4m Bordeaux CF The worst buy of the lot - loaned to Olympiakos who quickly got rid of him. 0/5 Bomb squad team captain.
18 Renan Lodi Loan Atletico Madrid LB Has to be the first signing of the Summer. A brilliant signing after a shaky start. 4/5
19 Willy Boly Free Wolves CB Willy was our first choice CB until he got injured. Great experience and really helped Joe Worrall get to grips with the Prem. 4/5
20 Loic Bade Loan Rennes CB He came, he saw, his got his loan cancelled “shrug” 0/5
21 Josh Bowler £4m Blackpool LW Great in the Champ with Blackpool, he went on loan to Olympiakos who sent him back. Went back to Blackpool on loan and got relegated. 0/5 Bomb-squad
22 Serge Aurier Free RB Mad Serge, what warrior. Absolutely love the bloke, though he does drop the odd ricket. 4/5
23 Adnan Kanuric Free GK Who?
Winter Window
24 Gustavo Scarpa Free Palmeiras MF Brazilian skateboarding, Rubics cube solving, headband wearing cult hero - got injured 3/5
25 Danilo £16m Palmeiras MF The star signing, future Brazilian superstar in waiting. Sorry United, he’s on a 5 year contract so dig deep. 5/5
26 Chris Woods undisclosed Newcastle CF At least he scored against Citeh and then thankfully got injured. Pointless and hopefully bomb squad 1/5
27 Keylor Navas Loan PSG GK Who’d have thought? Keylor Navas at little old Forest! Loses a point for getting beaten at his near post twice against Brentford. Gets it back for the outrageous shithousing Vs Arsenal 5/5
28 Jon Jo Shelvey Undisclosed Newcastle MF Taxi for Voldemort 1/5 Bomb squad I hope.
29 Felipe undisclosed Atletico Madrid CB Feck off VVD, there’s a new Rolls Royce in town. A pleasure to watch 5/5
30 Andrew Ayew Free LW Why? 1/5 Bomb squad.
Thanks for this - a fun read.
There’s definitely some talent through the door, and going by the ratings there’s more ‘hits’ than ‘misses’.
Also interesting notes about Jesse - we don’t really see the behind the scenes impact since he left United, but it seems his off the pitch impact has been appreciated more than his on field impact.
Thanks for that - it’s only my opinion but yes, more hits them misses. Also correct with Jesse too.
I enjoyed reading that. How has Scarpa played when fit?
He’s not really had a chance or a pre-season so difficult to say. When he did start, he ran out of gas in the second half and was a bit light weight. Injury ended his season. He could be a great 65th minute attacking sub, unpredictable and got a great shot on him.
Not watched much of Forest this season but fair do's, they've stayed up which many didn't think they'd do, re: Lingard, I think you're right, I got the impression he did the same at West Ham as well (and probably in Manchester as well)
Henderson is interesting, good barring distribution, care to expand a bit?
I enjoyed watching him in our games. Maybe hes one of those players thats more fun to watch than good necessarily?
There’s not much to add about Hendo. He’s the best keeper we’ve had since Mark Crossley. His shot stopping is brilliant, he catches well, commands the area well. However, when he gets the ball he just stands there weighing up his options then boots it anywhere (so it seems). Last season Brice Samba got the ball and immediately pinged a 40 yard ball out to Brennan or Djed Spence. So many of our break aways started with a quick accurate pass from Brice. I miss Brice!
I think Scarpa will come good. I watch alot of Brazilian football specially Palmeiras because of the Portuguese manager Abel Ferreira and last year Scarpa was probably the best player in the League when they won it.
Scarpa needs a pre season, fully adapt and solve his crypto currency issue where he lost 80% of his money in a scam made by a former teammate William Bigode. His head was not in the right place.
Danilo is a phenomenal player. Surprised he didn't go to a bigger club (no offense to Forest) but it paid off in terms of adaptation and playing time. Forest will earn big money with him. Also João Gomes bought from Flamengo by Wolves also has huge potential to become a world class player. Flamengo midfield hasn't been the same since he was sold.
Congrats on avoiding relegation btw.
Proper legend. I remember reading about the club installing a bed on the team bus so he could lay down on road trips to aid his bad back.
Absolutely! “Shithouse” does the best cloughy impressions and some of his stories are roll around the floor hilarious. The one about asking Clough for a pay rise! “Now young man, do you trust me“ “Yes Boss” “Right, sign that contract, I’ll fill in the rest and feck off” “yes boss”
Cheers
Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't, but I always hate when promoted teams sack the manager that got them promoted in the first place, if they're anywhere hovering near the relegation zone.
I mean, what the f**k did they expect?!
I think Chelsea have shown how difficult it can be too just bring in a load of talented players and it translate on the pitch so credit has to go to Steve Cooper for that and the board for sticking with him during that sticky spell.
The will be in a better position going into the new season for that. Cooper can trim the squad including the poor signings from last summer and add 3-4 new additions which may include some of the loans. Is Navas on loan or a permanent?
And would Forest fans prefer Navas to be turned into a permanent or Henderson?
The will be in a better position going into the new season for that. Cooper can trim the squad including the poor signings from last summer and add 3-4 new additions which may include some of the loans. Is Navas on loan or a permanent?
And would Forest fans prefer Navas to be turned into a permanent or Henderson?
Navas has said he wants to finish his career closer to home unfortunately. The GK position is a conundrum. If Navas was even 3 years younger then no question it would be him. Henderson’s distribution is an issue as our style of low block, quick breaks needs a quick thinking GK with good feet. Having said that, I think we will at least try to bring Hendo back.
How much do you think you'll spend this summer @Forest Red ? 100m?
Not a clue - the spend last summer was something none of us expected. However, the owner is very ambitious and wants trophies so I would think some decent spending is being planned.
How much do you think is available? Due to this seasons splurge you need to be careful.
Again I can only speculate. We’ve always been pretty scrupulous in terms complying with FFP when back in the Championship. In a recent Q&A with the Chairmen, he said there was definitely a plan A and plan B in place depending on which league we were in.
Forest for sure despite the mockery have a decent spine now. Navas-Lodi-Felipe-Danilo-MGW-Johnson-Awoniyi if all signed and kept is comfortably 13th or 14th next season if they can add 2-3 other reliable players.
Bigger question is Steve Cooper's future I think. He knows he came very close to being sacked a couple of times so given there's still talk of Palace being long time admirers then I'd fancy that just to have a bit more job security at top level. Plus his presence there could tempt the likes of Conor Gallagher to consider full time move to Palace.
Bigger question is Steve Cooper's future I think. He knows he came very close to being sacked a couple of times so given there's still talk of Palace being long time admirers then I'd fancy that just to have a bit more job security at top level. Plus his presence there could tempt the likes of Conor Gallagher to consider full time move to Palace.
I think Cooper has managed to build up enough credit now that even if it goes wrong next season he will be able to get a mid to lower level PL table job quite easily.
As far as I remember, United did the same with Pallister
As much as I'd like to think that the reality is likely to be different, if it starts to go wrong he'll be sacked
My point is that even if that happens and he gets sacked I think he's built enough of a reputation that other PL clubs would give him a shot.
You are right in saying that if it goes wrong he’ll be sacked - that’s football management. The difference with Coops is the degree it would have to go wrong and the time he’ll be given to fix it. There are two things in his favour: the fan base will never turn against him, we love the guy - in Coops we trust etc etc. The second is that Marikanis gave quite an emotional interview post Arsenal, where he said what a great decision it was not to sack the manager and took credit for it. Things would have to have gone catastrophically wrong (and even then, the fan base would trust Coops to fix it) for Marikanis to wield the axe. He also knows it would negatively affect his relationship with the fans. Having said that, the owner does expect progress next season and I get the feeling he and Coops have a relationship based on respect rather than friendship.
That's true enough
I expect Forest to show progress next year honestly. This season there was an element of throw a bunch of sh%t against the wall and see what sticks so far as the transfer policy is concerned but you now have a core that works and can make some fairly considered moves to build going forward. Maintaining PL status is massive as that should be enough to ward off any interest in the likes of MGW and Johnson and then you have some serious young talent like Danilo coming through as well as the more measured progress of other youngsters like Williams. No reason Forest cannot be comfortably mid table and looking up like Brentford have been this year.
A Times article about Cooper this season
If anyone’s interested, a decent article giving a bit of an insight on Coopers philosophy and methods wrapped up in a season report
If anyone’s interested, a decent article giving a bit of an insight on Coopers philosophy and methods wrapped up in a season report
When you see what happened at Chelsea, I think Cooper deserves massive credit for organizing the squad, keeping morale up and having consistency.
Yes, it’s great to be ambitious but having such a high turnover of players would have killed off a number of other managers, who would have almost certainly paid the price for the inconsistency brought on by such an overload.
Not only has he kept them up, but he has organized the squad to a degree that it’s very clear for those in charge who needs to be kept and who is surplus.
It’s a top job under very difficult circumstances.
Yes, it’s great to be ambitious but having such a high turnover of players would have killed off a number of other managers, who would have almost certainly paid the price for the inconsistency brought on by such an overload.
Not only has he kept them up, but he has organized the squad to a degree that it’s very clear for those in charge who needs to be kept and who is surplus.
It’s a top job under very difficult circumstances.
The Wimbledon Ghetto blaster is a classic. There’s another one he tells about making his debut. He’s a young player, gets straight in the first team and Forest win their first three matches with Crossley in goal. So he doesn’t get too cocky, he makes him play in his sons Sunday league side the day after appearing on match of the day with Forest. Long story short, Crossley gets called into Cloughy’s office on Monday morning and told that’s his sons side have been fined £50 for fielding an ineligible player and he’s docking his wages to pay the fine!
Didn’t see your post until now. A fun to read really!
It’s surprising to know Gibbs-White costs so much. But, every time when watching forest, he is always the star player on the pitch and he demonstrated in the arsenal game he is a real fighter. I am not sure he is far from Madison’s level. I guess he will be named to England squad very soon, but he needs Forest produces a better platform to achieve that. Forest next season will be interesting to watch, maybe a good platform is already taking shape on the way.
Fantastic
