Head coach Steve Cooper will be sweating on the fitness of two key players ahead of Nottingham Forest’s clash with Bournemouth.
Brennan Johnson’s brace made it eight home games unbeaten for the Reds in all competitions, as they toppled Leicester City 2-0 at the weekend. As they prepare to make the trip south, looking for what would be only their second away win of the Premier League season, they are up to 13th in the table.
But three points against the Foxes came at a cost, with injury concerns over midfielder Ryan Yates and goalkeeper Dean Henderson. Forest were waiting to get clarity on the extent of any damage done, but if either or both are struggling for the clash against the Cherries, it would leave Cooper with a selection headache.
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Manchester United loanee Henderson has kept six clean-sheets in the league this term; losing him for any period of time would be a huge blow, given he has been integral to the Reds’ recent improvement. Cooper admitted at full-time on Saturday that his first impressions were “not good”, which could mean Wayne Hennessey being brought into the XI at the Vitality Stadium.
Depending on Willy Boly’s fitness, Cooper could well stick with the same back line on the south coast. The defender injured his ankle in the Carabao Cup victory over Wolverhampton Wanderers and was not involved against City, with Scott McKenna stepping in alongside Joe Worrall at centre-back.
In midfield, Yates will be desperate to feature - it takes a lot for him to go down injured, let alone to miss games. As with the other injury doubts, though, Forest will not want to take any risks.
Cooper could have a new addition to come into the equation by Saturday, with midfielder Danilo set to complete a move to the City Ground. The Welshman tends not to throw signings straight into the first-team, however, so if Yates does miss out, Jack Colback might be the obvious choice to replace him - just as he did at half-time at the weekend.
Cooper could also have a decision to make in attack. He had hoped Taiwo Awoniyi would get the green light against the Foxes, but if the striker is still not back, Sam Surridge will no doubt be keen to face his former club.
Surridge helped to change the game on Saturday, with Morgan Gibbs-White moving to a No.10 role when the forward came on for Gustavo Scarpa. The latter has made a positive early impression, however, so there is a big decision to be made about the best approach for the visitors.
Predicted Forest XI (assuming none of the potential injury doubts are fit): Hennessey; Aurier, Worrall, McKenna, Lodi; Colback, Freuler, Mangala; Scarpa; Johnson, Gibbs-White.
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