Head coach Steve Cooper will continue to “challenge and criticise” to help get the best out of Joe Worrall as the Nottingham Forest defender looks set for a run in the starting XI.
The Reds skipper has been in and out of the first-team this season as Cooper has tried various combinations at centre-back. Like most of his teammates, he has also had a fair few ups and downs while adapting to the step up to the Premier League.
The 26-year-old is now likely to get an extended run in the side, however, as Forest cope with a defensive injury crisis. And Cooper believes that will be of benefit when it comes to the challenges which come with playing in the top-flight.
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"It's definitely about belief. I speak to Joe every day - or he speaks to me! But I had a good chat with him,” said the Welshman.
"Me and Joe are strong in our relationship. I’m not always the easiest guy with him, for sure, but he knows there’s a good trust there - and I feel it back as well.
"I just think that Joe has been a little bit like the team, where he's had some really, really good moments and he’s really grown with the step to the Premier League, and in that growing there have been some side steps as well. We can all say the same about ourselves.
"But what you see from Joe is what you get - a real desire to do well every single day, first one out on the training pitch, especially when Yatesy (Ryan Yates) is not with us, and commitment. He can be challenged and even criticised at times well by me, and he takes it. Sometimes he can bear the brunt of it from me because he's the captain and the local boy, and they tend to get it a bit harder than sometimes the others - sometimes unfairly as well, maybe they would say, but they get on with it.
"His transition to the Premier League overall has been a positive one. But like us all, and the team, we have to strive to improve and get better.
"Getting a run in the team helps, for sure, because it means you’re playing well and you’re contributing in a positive way. And it just means you’re getting used to the level.
"The more time you can spend at any level the more you don't just get used to it, you're able to excel. That goes for everyone.”
Worrall and Felipe are currently the only two fit central defenders available ahead of Saturday’s clash against Manchester City. Scott McKenna (six weeks) and Willy Boly (three months) are facing significant spells on the sidelines with the hamstring injuries they sustained against Fulham last weekend, while Moussa Niakhate is not yet back in full training following his own hamstring problem.
The club expect to receive a response from the Premier League today, following their application to replace Boly in their 25-man squad with Steve Cook. The latter had missed the cut when the list was submitted after the January transfer window, but Forest believe they have a “clear case” within the rules for making the change.
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