It's a case of one step forward, two steps back with Bristol City at the moment.
The results are obviously important, manager Nigel Pearson knows all too well it's a results-based business, but with little to play for until the end of the season encouraging performances and signs of progress are paramount.
The 2-0 defeat at Forest was certainly a backwards step following a handful of decent showings - in truth, the hosts could and probably should have had four or five if Dan Bentley wasn't in such fine form.
Pearson didn't beat around the bush at the full-time whistle admitting his side were second best all over the pitch having registered just a solitary shot on target throughout.
He admitted the players didn't produce what they had worked on throughout the week to nullify an impressive Steve Cooper side and ultimately they were made to pay for their shortcomings.
But Pearson may even admit to himself that he got his first-half tactics wrong in a showing that saw City torn to shreds down the flanks - here's the big talking points.
Poor old Pring
The left wing-back was one of the casualties following the defeat at Swansea a couple of weeks ago having been dropped to the bench in favour of youngster Sam Bell for the win and defeat over Middlesbrough and Coventry.
Pearson brought him back into the fold yesterday afternoon to provide a little more experience in defence, allowing Jay Dasilva to move to the opposite side.
It was a wise move in principle, as an away trip to Forest is no easy task with the defence expected to be under intense pressure during periods of the game.
But Pring was handed a torrid time down his side as Djed Spence ran riot at times. The 24-year-old wasn't helped by receiving a soft booking after just nine minutes meaning he was forced to be very careful with his challenges.
You'd need an abacus to count the number of times Spence and Brennan Johnson got in behind him in that first half.
Ultimately, the goal eventually arrived down his side when a cross-field pass found Johnson whose deflected effort was enough to beat Bentley at the near post.
In Pring's defence, he was horribly exposed in the diamond formation. Cooper had certainly done his homework as the Forest duo doubled up on the left-back leaving him chasing shadows.
City played way too narrow in midfield, leaving Forest time and space to exploit the touchline and perhaps that comes down to the manager's tactical decision at the beginning of the game.
You can understand why Pearson stuck with the same formation as he had done in the previous two games and hindsight is a wonderful thing sometimes. However, it was the Achilles heel in that first period and Pring was ultimately sacrificed at half-time for Robbie Cundy with the manager opting for a three at the back.
Yes, Pring endured a rotten afternoon and one that he will hope to erase quickly from his memory, but he can't be made completely to blame for the defensive struggles.
Robbie Cundy
That brings us nicely onto the next talking point, and that's the performance of Robbie Cundy.
He's still awaiting his first start in a Bristol City shirt and that 45-minute cameo was the longest supporters have had to see him play since moving to Ashton Gate in 2019.
Before today, he had mustered 21 minutes of league action - although injuries have hampered his progress this season. Although for one half of football, we finally got to see what the former Bath City man has to offer.
He played on the right of the back three and it's safe to say he's certainly an intimidating figure. He could have been excused for looking rusty but Cundy barely put a foot wrong during his cameo especially as City were up against it for large periods of that second half.
Cundy was assured in the tackle and dominant in the air - something that has been seriously lacking throughout the season.
Even at the full-time whistle, Pearson made a note of complimenting his performance when asked about the quality of his goalkeeper Dan Bentley.
He said: "Yeah, he (Bentley) was one of our brighter performers. There weren’t too many but he did okay. Robbie Cundy did okay when he went on."
Not exactly a glowing endorsement, but when decent individual performances were so few and far between, it's a compliment nonetheless.
Not saying Cundy is the answer to City's defensive problems - although the problem feels like a bit of an understatement at the moment. That's 63 goals conceded in 35 games and two or more goals conceded in 12 consecutive away games.
However, it feels an opportunity for Cundy could be right around the corner and it may come as soon as next weekend determining the severity of Tomas Kalas' injury. He headed off in the final 10 minutes with an injury leaving City down to 10 men but Pearson didn't give anything away at the full-time whistle, saying he didn't know.
If it is serious, then City will be left threadbare in defence with Rob Atkinson also still sidelined. It could mean Cundy will finally get his opportunity from the off at home to Birmingham next weekend.
Consistently inconsistent
It's incredibly frustrating for the supporters, it must drive Pearson and Curtis Fleming around the bend at the best of times.
Just when you think they have the building blocks in place to produce something special, they turn in a performance like this one and it feels back to the drawing board once again.
There was a graphic being bounded around social media last week highlighting that City haven't won back-to-back matches all season but also haven't gone more than three matches without a win.
The optimists among us would have backed Pearson and Co to have put an end to that in the week at home to Coventry coming off the back of four straight victories at Ashton Gate - but that half-full glass would quickly evaporate.
The lack of consistency also goes back to the opening day of the season. City started terribly at home, winning just one of their first eight matches while away from home they won four out of their opening six.
Since November, those stats have been flipped on their head and now while The Robins are winning at home, they can't buy an away victory for love nor money. That's 11 games now on the road without a victory for those who have given up counting.
The results haven't been great, but the performances in the last three matches in particular have been commendable. That was not the case today, and Forest were almost toying with City at times.
The consistency can come down to numerous factors. It's largely the same group of players playing every week, sometimes twice a week, and there's only so many appearances you can maintain those ridiculously high levels of fitness.
It could also come down the number of youngsters playing in the side, you can't expect them to be playing so consistently while they're still very much developing both physically and mentally.
That should be Pearson's biggest task now from here until the end of the season, trying to bring some sort of steadiness to results in order to build from heading into next season.
Welcome back Matty James
It's a huge boost to get the midfielder back among the squad and seeing him feature for 26 minutes in the defeat yesterday afternoon.
His introduction didn't particularly affect the game but his return was one of few positives that can be taken out of The City Ground.
Not only because he's an important player both on and off the field, but because he will finally allow for some rotation in a midfield that has started to look particularly leggy.
Han-Noah Massengo in particular has appeared to have struggled in the last two matches and he was well off the pace on Saturday compared to his usual high standards.
It was James who replaced the Frenchman just after the hour mark, which may have surprised some considering Williams is still considered to be finding his full fitness.
In a way, it just emphasised Massengo's performance which came off the back of an error against Coventry that led to their winner in the final moments of the contest.
When James and Williams were sidelined, alongside King of course, Massengo and Alex Scott were holding the fort in the middle admirably. But for both youngsters, that was their 10th start in exactly six weeks perhaps emphasising that they need a recuperation period.
For Scott, he has clocked up the second most minutes compared to any other teenager in the Championship this season behind Coventry's Ian Maatsen. He's on course for 2,500 minutes throughout the season and as a colleague pointed out, every 18-year-old who hit that mark last season is now playing in the top flight.
James may have to remain patient to earn a starting spot but just his presence allows Pearson to become more adaptable in midfield - which could see Scott move back to a wing-back role at times.
His return will also provide a vital opportunity for one or two of the younger players to have a much-needed rest from the demands of Championship football.
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