It has been a long time since boos were heard at the City Ground. Nottingham Forest’s remarkable rise under Steve Cooper has seen to that.
The near-12 months of the Welshman’s tenure have been nothing short of sensational. Under his stewardship, the Reds have been on a constant upward trajectory.
Still, there was always going to come, in Cooper’s words, “a sticky moment”; a different kind of challenge to what he has been used to. A second half capitulation to Bournemouth, making for three straight defeats in a tough week, presents him with just that.
READ MORE: How the Reds rated against Bournemouth
READ MORE: Cooper responds as Forest defeat met by boos at City Ground
Whatever your thoughts on the booing - and it by no means came from a majority, but was certainly audible - there was little getting away from a dreadful 45 minutes on the banks of the Trent. Cooper and his players knew it, too.
Cooper’s challenge
There was no shirking in the manager’s post-match press conference; no desire to use excuses, even when it was put to him that this is still a new-look team. “Let’s not hide away from the fact that we’ve thrown away a win,” he said. “We’ve not done it in a very good way. We’ve conceded three goals at home, and there’s nothing good about that.”
Positives were, indeed, hard to come by. The Premier League is brutal and unforgiving. Moving past this will be where Cooper earns his corn as much as overseeing any key victories.
But perspective is needed, too. And patience.
Forest are six games into what will be a long, gruelling season. They are a squad still getting to know each other, with some players and a manager adapting to the league. To a league which is incredibly tough, even for the best.
This, settling into the top-flight, was always going to take time. At this level, you cannot run before you can walk.
Cooper has shown he is a quick learner, though. He is a master at man-management; at picking players up and creating a sense of unity.
Certainly, his team selection and tactics could be questioned against the Cherries. But that is something which has not happened often over the past year. A bad day at the office, a terrible 45 minutes, is not suddenly cause for panic mode.
Wrong tactics?
This is an important month, no doubt. Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester City were always likely to be write-offs; those games were never going to define the Reds’ season.
September and October are a different kettle of fish, and a chance to get a better judgement of where the side are at. Four of the next six matches being on the road suddenly doesn’t half look tough, though.
Forest cannot afford to fall apart in the way they did against the Cherries. They had been well on top in the first half. Goals from Cheikhou Kouyate and Brennan Johnson had put them firmly in control.
There had been plenty of nice moves and positive play. Even so, they had struggled to create too many clearcut chances.
An attacking trio of Johnson, Morgan Gibbs-White and Jesse Lingard has no shortage of talent. But playing without an out-and-out striker can bring its own problems. The hosts missed that presence in the box and someone to help make the ball stick up front.
That being said, they still went in at the break with a decent advantage. What really caused an issue was not dealing with Bournemouth’s formation tweak in the second half.
Errors at the back
Once the Cherries pulled one back, the momentum swung. The visitors got their tails up and really went for it.
Cooper’s side, by contrast, began to look edgy and nervous. They never really recovered their composure.
The goals could have been avoided, though. Sloppy play and individual mistakes - including a rare one from the usually impeccable Scott McKenna - gave Bournemouth a helping hand.
The defence has come under scrutiny, but they could also have done with some better protection and players tracking back at times. It has to be a collective effort.
Cooper knows the importance of having a solid foundation; it was integral to last term’s success. Tightening things up still needs some work.
Transfer business
On paper, the squad Forest have assembled from their summer shopping spree has more than enough about it to hold its own in the Premier League. Indeed, they have already shown they are capable of that. It was only a week ago these players were being praised for their performance against Spurs.
There is undoubted quality in there. Kouyate and Renan Lodi still did pretty well in Saturday’s defeat, while Morgan Gibbs-White was particularly lively in the first half. Neco Williams has impressed before and Dean Henderson is a top-class keeper.
The test for Cooper now is finding his best XI. Sticking with a fairly settled side might be tougher in the top-flight than it was last year, in the Championship; doing so while keeping players happy, will be even harder. But it could help when it comes to trying to form relationships on the pitch.
Extra time on the training ground before heading to Leeds United on Monday week may be no bad thing. This is the first significant bump in the road for Cooper to navigate, but it is a long way off being any kind of crisis.
The harsh realities of the Premier League mean the bad weeks can look particularly rough. Forest have already learnt some chastening lessons. This team and this manager deserve time, though. Regardless of how Saturday panned out, there is the potential for something good, when it clicks.
“Football management is about highs and lows, and good moments and difficult moments. We’ve had a difficult week, let’s not hide away from that,” Cooper said.
“For me, now, I need to show everybody - most importantly, the supporters - that I can manage this club after a difficult week. That’s important to me, because it’s easy to manage after a good week.”
What did you make of Saturday's defeat? Have your say in the comments below
READ NEXT:
