Friendly Round Up!

With a little over 2 weeks until the Championship season kicks off against Blackpool, Forest have had mixed fortunes in their friendlies so far.

Wins against Ilkeston and Porto B saw the Reds scoring 7 in 2 fixtures, but Stuart Pearce saw the European leg of pre-season end with a 1-0 defeat to Portuguese Premier League side Rio Ave.

Forest were slow out of the blocks and created little, but pre-season is about getting the team to gel, integrating the new faces and building up fitness levels. Worryingly, Henri Lansbury picked up an early knee injury to further add to Forest’s woes.

With a midweek trip to Rotherham’s New York stadium, Forest gave new boys Michael Mancienne and Jack Hunt a run out, with Reid returning from injury and Danny Fox starting at centre half.

Pearce and his coaching staff have regularly shuffled the pack, keen to get minutes on the pitch for as many players as possible, giving opportunities to the likes of Tyler Walker – whilst also trying players in less familiar positions.

Although another 1-0 defeat followed, Forest did create more chances but again lacked quality and a cutting edge in the final 3rd – which sounds familiar. Veldwijk came closest, whilst a former Benfica youngster could provide a Silva lining and looks a decent gamble for Pearce and Co to take.

There was some good news, with confirmation that Lansbury knee injury isn’t as bad as feared, with an expected lay off of 2 weeks for the influential and sought after midfielder.

Forest travel south to face MK Dons on Sunday, 27th July with a 3pm kick off. An extra 300 ticket allocation has been announced, with availability to purchase up until 4pm Friday.

Forest finish their friendlies with another away trip to York on 30th July, topped off with the only home fixture against West Brom on Saturday 2nd August.

Come On You Reds!!!