Football can be an unrelentingly dispiriting, cynical and cruel sport - or ever more increasingly, business.
State backed investment funds are buying clubs to change perceptions of countries through sport. Players are taking extraordinary amounts of money to move to the Middle East, which is fine for those past 30 who have done it all, but more questionable for 26-year-old Ruben Neves. The Wolves man has seen reported wages of £400,000 tip the scales towards money over spending his best years in the best leagues ahead of a move to Al Hilal.
Closer to home, Gary O'Neil was woken by a call at 6am to tell him he had been sacked by Bournemouth after taking potential relegation fodder to Premier League safety in relatively comfortable fashion. Having banked the club another batch of TV millions, O'Neil was given the boot by relatively new American owner Bill Foley, who clearly thinks they can do better than their 15th placed finish by promptly appointing Andoni Iraola. The Spaniard did a fine job at Rayo Vallecano but it does feel harsh in the extreme.
In a sea of cynicism, Nottingham Forest have in some ways bucked the trend even if not always by design. They had a noble shirt sponsor in UK for UNHCR, the UN refugee agency, after failing to attract the kind of lucrative offer they thought they would at the start of last season.
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They also stuck with Steve Cooper after eventually concluding there was no one better available at the time when the chips were down. They are also one of the few clubs where it feels there is a genuine bond between players, manager and fans, especially considering their position in the table for much of last season.
Leicester fans turned, Leeds fans really turned and West Ham fans lost patience with David Moyes until they won the Europa Conference League. That bond and sense of togetherness won't last forever at the City Ground. It could go on the day Cooper leaves, whenever that proves to be. So Forest must make it last for as long as they can.
One way to do that in the short term could be to end any talk of Brennan Johnson leaving by offering him a new contract. True, he only signed fresh terms a year ago, but after registering 11 goal contributions last season, Johnson should only get better with his valuation going up in turn.
He is already worth way more than the £30million Brentford offered, probably at least double that. The day will come when the Wales international goes if he continues his progression, but if Forest play their hand well, as they tend to with sales, then he should go for much closer to £100m to a top six club.
Joe Worrall is another home grown talent who could do with a new contract as he only 12 months left on his deal, as do fellow centre-halves Scott McKenna, Willy Boly and Felipe meaning Forest have some quick choices to make. Keeping the current squad together and building on it will be key. Now isn't the time to sell your best players. Something Forest probably know, but ongoing talk about Johnson's future isn't entirely helpful.
Do you agree? Let us know in the comments section.
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