Key Points

Nuno Espirito Santo has delivered a brutal assessment of Nottingham Forest's pre-season struggles. The manager admits his squad is alarmingly unprepared just days before their Premier League opener. Forest's £55m sale of key winger Anthony Elanga has left a major gap in the team. With only one goal scored in seven pre-season matches, serious concerns remain about their competitiveness.

Key Points: Nuno Santo Calls Nottingham Forest Unbalanced Before Premier League Start

  • Nuno Santo warns Forest are unprepared for Premier League start
  • Club struggles with squad imbalance after Elanga's £55m exit
  • Pre-season woes saw just one goal in seven matches
  • Manager cites failed planning and lack of squad cohesion
2 min read

Unbalanced Nottingham Forest have major problem, says boss Nuno Espirito Santo

Nottingham Forest boss Nuno Espirito Santo admits squad is "very, very far" from ready as Premier League opener looms amid Elanga exit concerns.

"We are very far - very, very far - from where we should be. - Nuno Espirito Santo"

London, August 15

Nottingham Forest head coach Nuno Espirito Santo has classified his side as "unbalanced", claimed that they have a "major problem" and placed them "very, very far" from the position they should be as the latest edition of the Premier League stands on the verge of commencement.

With Nottingham preparing for the Europa League this season, they have made three acquisitions, including Dan Ndoye, Igor Jesus and Jair Cunha. The sole major outgoing is the £55m sale of Anthony Elanga to Newcastle United.

The club has several deals in the pipeline, but the timeline for their completion remains subject to discussion. Nottingham, who will kick off their Premier League campaign on Sunday against Brentford, endured a challenging pre-season tour.

They struck just once in seven matches, and Nuno came out to admit that their summer plans have gone off the rails. Nuno delivered an unfiltered assessment of their current situation just a couple of days before embarking on the new season.

"We are very far - very, very far - from where we should be. We are very far in terms of preparation, in terms of planning, in terms of the squad. So we are all very worried that in two or three days time we are playing for the Premier League, the most demanding competition in the world. And we are very far. Very, very far," Nuno told Sky Sports.

"The plans that we had didn't come through. The preparation in terms of the squad was not ideal. We didn't have a chance to create the bond, and this is what I think is more important. Because we don't know which squad we have. We have players working here that know they're going to leave on loan. We have a major problem," he added.

Nuno didn't shy away from expressing his disappointment about Elanga's departure. The Swedish winger racked up 11 assists last season, with Jacob Murphy and Mohamed Salah emerging as the two players ahead of him.

"Very difficult, very difficult - because Anthony's [role] is very specific in the work and in the characteristics that he has. So it's not easy to replace Anthony. It's not easy," he said.

- ANI

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Reader Comments

S
Shreya B
The coach sounds genuinely worried. In Indian cricket, we never see coaches speaking so openly about team weaknesses before a big tournament. Different culture in football I guess!
A
Aman W
Forest's situation reminds me of some IPL teams who make last-minute changes and struggle. At least they're honest about their problems instead of giving fake "we're confident" statements like we often hear here.
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Priya S
₹55m for Elanga seems like good business, but what's the point if you can't reinvest properly? Hope they don't become this season's whipping boys. As an Indian EPL fan, I want all teams to be competitive.
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David E
Watching from India, I appreciate Nuno's honesty. Most managers would sugarcoat things. But saying "very very far" four times? That's alarming. Brentford will smell blood on Sunday.
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Kavya N
The pre-season stats are scary - 1 goal in 7 matches! Even our Indian football team performs better than that 😅 Jokes aside, they need to sort their attack fast or it'll be a long season.

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