Nottingham Forest fans’ continued belief in Steve Cooper and his team is what maintained a memorable atmosphere at the City Ground, it has been claimed, despite periods of struggle this season.
Forest were roared on to a 1-0 victory over Arsenal on Saturday - a result which saw the Reds avoid relegation with one game of the season remaining. And the noise and atmosphere at the City Ground is something that has been widely praised this campaign.
Speaking on the Guardian’s Football Weekly podcast , former Premier League centre-back Nedum Onuoha says it is something that could have easily turned during the season as Forest struggled. However, he hinted that the club sticking with head coach Cooper, even with the manager under pressure at times this season, is what maintained the positive atmosphere in the stands.
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“Respectfully, there are stadiums like that which have the history, which have the generations of knowing they’ve been there and they’re very comfortable there, but those stadiums are also very good when the team is doing well,” he said.
“When a team is not doing so well, some of that passion then gets delivered onto the field onto the home team, so at times it’s a real mix. I’ve seen this at Sunderland in the past, Newcastle in the past, when things are toxic, some of the home players, you get the feeling they’re not looking forward to playing there.
“But, given the fact that Cooper is there and he got them into the Premier League, there was always a sense of positivity, even though there were things that weren’t going their way. They sing for the manager, they obviously like some of the players, some of the 30, but they love the manager.
“So, as a consequence, they’re not going to throw the towel in on him while he’s in charge, so it makes it for a spot where they’ll push, push, push and hope things get better but still have belief in someone. “
Forest end their season on Sunday with a trip to Selhurst Park to take on Crystal Palace (4.30pm kick-off). With safety secured, the fans making the journey will be in a celebratory mood.
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