Two weeks from today, Nottingham Forest will get their 2024/25 Premier League campaign up and running.
Bournemouth will be the visitors at the City Ground on August 17. And there is just one more dress rehearsal to go before then.
The summer has generally been a positive one so far, both on and off the pitch. Good transfer business appears to have been done and the Reds have shown encouraging signs in their friendlies.
It wouldn’t be pre-season, though, if there were not a few kinks still to iron out. Head coach Nuno Espirito Santo admitted as much after Friday night’s 0-0 draw with Villarreal.
“I think we are OK. Not ready, but that is normal – we still have a couple of weeks and one more match to go,” he said. “But I think we are in a good momentum of trying to build, trying to know each other better and play the way we want to play.”
The next time Forest run out Trentside, it will be with three points on the line. With the countdown to the clash with the Cherries firmly on, we take a look at the talking points from the Reds’ penultimate pre-season friendly.
Was the starting line-up a glimpse into Nuno’s thinking for the opening day of the season? It certainly wouldn’t be a surprise if a very similar XI takes to the pitch in a fortnight’s time. It was a strong side.
Without explicitly confirming it, Nuno hinted afterwards that Matz Sels will be first-choice between the posts. However, the picture could well change at some point as another goalkeeper is on the club’s shopping list.
The Belgian started behind a back four of Neco Williams, Nikola Milenkovic, Murillo and Ola Aina. The smart money would be on it being the same again when Bournemouth come to town. The signs from the previous friendlies suggest a three-man defence will be used at some point, but perhaps not in the first game.
For the most part, those four were pretty solid on Friday night. Murillo showed his lack of experience by giving away a penalty with a clumsy challenge – the second time he has done that in pre-season – but Sels seemed to get a touch to push the resulting spot-kick on to the post. The visitors didn’t have too many clearcut chances otherwise.
In attack, few would argue with deploying Anthony Elanga, Morgan Gibbs-White and Callum Hudson-Odoi in support of Chris Wood in the opening game. New winger Jota Silva will likely be eased in gently, and the same will apply should the club get a deal for another wide man over the line before then.
The real dilemma comes in midfield. Finding the right balance in the centre of the pitch and keeping all of his midfielders happy will be the big challenges for Nuno. There may well still be a question mark over who starts in the league opener.
Ibrahim Sangare and Danilo got the nod on Friday night. The former maintained his fine pre-season form and has surely booked himself a starting spot. Danilo did well, too, but the competition is fierce.
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