Nottingham Forest make the trip to face Sheffield United on Friday night for a crunch Championship clash.
Saturday’s victory over Bristol City at the City Ground kept the Reds firmly in the mix for a top-six finish.
And they will be aiming for a positive result against one of their play-offs rivals this week, in their first game of what promises to be a crucial month for Steve Cooper’s side.
Ahead of the match at Bramall Lane, Reds reporter Sarah Clapson answered fans’ questions in a live Q&A on our Forest Facebook page.
Q: When is Lewis Grabban back?
A: He’s expected to be out for about two months. The injury occurred right at the end of January, just before deadline day, so that would put a return at somewhere around the end of March or early April.
He’ll obviously have to build up his fitness first and get back up to speed before he makes a comeback, so it could be a little longer than that before we actually see him in action.
I expect it will be into April by the time we see him on the pitch again.
One positive is that he hasn’t had to undergo surgery. A decision was made to let the injury heal naturally.
It’s still going to take him a while to get match fit once he has been through his rehab, so it’s going to be towards the back end of the season before he’s available again.
Hopefully when he does come back Forest still have something to play for, because he could have a big part to play in the final games, if so.
When he suffered the injury I was a bit worried about where the goals were going to come from, because he’s been so important for Forest.
But other players have stepped up in his absence. Brennan Johnson has really stepped up, getting into double-figures with his goals. And Keinan Davis has also done really well - his hold-up play is outstanding and he’s a real handful for defenders.
Others do still need to keep chipping in, though. Sam Surridge would really benefit from getting off the mark. It would be great to see the likes of James Garner and Philip Zinckernagel get a few more, too. And the defenders can also weigh in - Steve Cook looks like he’s getting really close to his first goal for the club. Djed Spence gets in some great positions, it would be good to see him get a couple more.
Q: How rock-solid has our defence been?!
A: The defence has been absolutely superb in recent weeks. That three-man back line of Joe Worrall, Steve Cook and Scott McKenna is up there with the best in the Championship. Other teams will be looking on with envy.
They have been immense, and they will be so key in the final weeks of the season.
The three of them are so good defensively, but they are also really good on the ball and constantly look to carry it forward.
McKenna’s run down the left wing on Saturday is up there with moments of the season, for me. It was great to see, lovely link-up play with Max Lowe and all the better for it ending with a goal.
Their priority, though, is to keep clean-sheets - and Forest certainly haven’t been conceding many goals while that trio have been playing together. The three of them have quickly developed a good understanding, which helps with that.
It will definitely have helped Ethan Horvath, coming into the team knowing he’s got that back line in front of him. He said himself that it’s a luxury to be playing with players of that quality.
Having a solid defence is so important. It’s the foundation on which you build the team.
With the attacking players Forest have got, there’s always a chance they are going to score, so keeping a clean-sheet gives them every chance of winning games.
Q: Do you think Ethan Horvath should keep his place even after Brice Samba returns from suspension?
A: I do think Samba will come straight back in after his suspension. He’s a really good keeper, and among the best in the Championship. And he’s been first-choice this season.
Goalkeeper is the one position where you also don’t want to be chopping and changing too much.
Horvath has definitely taken his opportunity, though. He couldn’t have done any more, keeping two clean-sheets so far. If he does drop back to the bench after Friday night’s game, he can be pleased with his performances and maybe even feel a bit hard done by not to keep the shirt.
Come the summer, the manager might well have a decision to make about who is first-choice longer-term and whether Samba’s temperament counts against him.
It’s going to be interesting to see whether he has toned that down a bit, having been suspended for these three games.
You’d hope he’s used this time while he’s been suspended to reflect on things and realise those moments of madness can prove costly. Hopefully he’s learned his lesson.
Horvath coming in and doing well should also have given him a kick up the backside. He’ll know that he can’t afford any drop in standards, because there’s someone else there who can come in and do a decent job.
Samba does have the edge over Horvath, for me, though. He’s an excellent shot-stopper and his distribution is better than Horvath’s. He’s rescued Forest on so many occasions and been a big part in them climbing up the table.
But it’s perhaps a closer contest between the two than we thought before these last couple of games.
If the manager does decide to stick with Horvath, I wouldn’t be any less confident about how Forest could do.
Q: James Garner was a midfield menace on Saturday. If only we could purchase such a player!
A: He was terrific again against Bristol City. After a slow start to the season, he’s well and truly got back to the form he showed last season.
I do think playing a deeper role suits him better. He can do a job and make an impact further forward, but he can really pull the strings from deep, while also still getting up the pitch. He’s great at pinging passes around and stamping his influence on games.
There’s no doubt he’s got bags of talent and is going to play in the Premier League one day, whoever that’s with.
It’s the case with a few of the loan players that Forest have to just enjoy them while they can and hope they can make a difference this season, in terms of getting the club into the top six.
If Forest do go up, maybe that could change the picture with some of the loanees. But with the likes of Garner and Spence, it’s difficult to see them staying beyond the summer. They are destined for the Premier League.
Ideally, Forest don’t want to rely on getting loan players in, because you end up with the problem they’ll have in the summer where it will be necessary to fill a few big holes.
But the reality of the situation at the moment is that they have to use loanees. And while that is the case, you just have to get the best out of the system - Forest have certainly done that this season.
It’s likely loans will be needed in the summer, too. On a positive note, this season will have shown to other clubs that, if you’ve got bright, young talent, Forest is a great place to send players; Steve Cooper is a great manager to help develop those players. That’s got to bode well for getting good loanees into the club in the future.
Q: What’s happening with Richie Laryea? He isn’t getting anywhere near the squad.
A: It’s a case of getting him up to speed, as well as getting used to English football and the Championship.
He joined while it was the MLS’ off-season, so his fitness wasn’t quite at the same level as the rest of the squad. And it’s easy to forget that he’s come from a very different environment - playing for Toronto is very different to playing in the Championship. It takes time to adapt.
And given where Forest are in the table, you have to be confident that whoever comes into the team can cope with how frenetic, physical and fast-paced the games are.
It’s taking time to ease Laryea in. Nobody will want to rush him.
But also, it’s difficult to bring him in at the moment because the team is doing so well. He’s not going to get past Spence or Lowe, with the form they are in.
I expect Jack Colback to play at left wing-back on Friday, when Lowe can’t play, because that’s the option the manager has gone with before. Colback has always done well there, and for such a big game, it would be a massive call to do anything different.
Steve Cooper has made it clear that he’s been keen to generally stick with the same group of players, to help build momentum - it’s difficult to argue with that decision, given the results they’ve been getting.
Laryea isn’t the only one who is struggling to get a look-in. The likes of Braian Ojeda and Joe Lolley have also been lacking in game-time.
Longer-term, I’m sure Laryea will get his chance at some point.
