Vitor Pereira bemoaned Nottingham Forest’s lack of preparation time and identified fatigue as being a problem against Brighton and Hove Albion at the weekend.
The Reds head coach will have the same issues to contend with as his team rally themselves to go again on Wednesday night. This time, he will have to navigate them while taking on title-chasing Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium (7.30pm kick-off).
A clash with Pep Guardiola’s charges can be daunting at the best of times. Forest go into it without a win in five in the Premier League and with a very quick turnaround from Sunday’s 2-1 defeat on the south coast.
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Pereira suggested some players were almost running on empty against the Seagulls, having played Fenerbahce in the Europa League a few days earlier. Whereas their hosts had enjoyed a full week to prepare, competing on two fronts continues to present a challenge for the Reds.
The difficulty for Pereira is although his first-choice XI can compete with anyone on their day, Forest’s back-up players have struggled to make the same impact. With that in mind, the Portuguese suggested a change in formation could be the way forward.
During the second half on Sunday, Pereira switched from a four-man back line to a three-man defence. It might be he goes with the latter from the start against City.
Jair Cunha gave a solid account of himself when he came off the bench against Brighton. The summer signing seems to have moved ahead of fellow Brazilian Morato in the pecking order so could line up alongside Murillo and Nikola Milenkovic in midweek.
Full-back Luca Netz also did well as a substitute on Sunday. It would be a big call to hand the 22-year-old his first start at the Etihad but he might at least have provided Pereira with food for thought after his cameo appearance.
Neco Williams has been Mr Reliable for much of the campaign but he was well off the pace against Brighton. If anyone epitomised the effects of mental and physical fatigue, it was the Welshman as he was guilty of some poor individual errors.
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Midfield duo Ibrahim Sangare and Elliot Anderson were also below par at the Amex. Pereira will need them to be back up to standard on Wednesday night, though, as their pair are so crucial for Forest.
Morgan Gibbs-White is capable of dropping deeper, while Nicolas Dominguez and Ryan Yates will hope to play their part in the remaining games. Sangare and Anderson, though, are capable of making the Reds tick; Forest need them on Wednesday.
A change in formation will also require a reshuffle at the top end of the pitch. At some point, perhaps Pereira might try pairing Igor Jesus and Taiwo Awoniyi up front but Manchester City away doesn’t seem the right time for that.
Jesus continues to find the going tough in the league. Is there a call to be made over whether Awoniyi should get the nod to start ahead of the Brazilian in midweek? Lorenzo Lucca was not included in the squad against Brighton and appears to be firmly out of favour.
As they continue to wait for Chris Wood to return from injury – amid hopes that could be next month – the Reds need others to step up with goals. Ensuring whoever leads the line has sufficient support is key.
Forest predicted XI: Sels; Jair, Milenkovic, Murillo; Aina, Sangare, Anderson, Williams; Gibbs-White, Hudson-Odoi; Jesus.
