Kenny Burns was highly critical of Lewis Grabban, saying the Nottingham Forest striker “has not been in form” of late and needs to work harder to get himself back in the starting lineup. The 31-year-old has struggled for goals of late, having failed to score in his last nine Championship appearances, and it’s cost him his place in attack.
Burns said to Nottinghamshire Live: “Lewis Grabban is a good player, but he’s not been in the form he was in earlier in the season. He hasn’t scored since he got two against Ipswich, at the start of December. And I think he needs to chip in with the other side of the game a bit more – the ugly things, like chase back and tackle. It’s up to him to win his place back.”
In four of his last five league outings for Forest, Grabban has found himself on the bench and has made little impact when introduced in the second-half. The nomadic centre-forward had a slow start to life at the City Ground, firing blanks in his first six appearances, but he found his feet in mid-September and didn’t look back – Grabban scored 14 goals in 13 games.
Since Martin O’Neill replaced Aitor Karanka, however, Daryl Murphy has been preferred in attack. The 35-year-old has started in Forest’s last six league games, although he’s scored just one goal since August. The Reds have suffered of late due to the lack of goals, suffering three defeats in their last four games and finding themselves six places and five points off playoffs.
Crippy Cooke’s previous article
Could Juan Rafael Fuentes provide backup for Robinson after Fox sale?
