Nottingham

Former Brighton manager Graham Potter says Nottingham Forest "look organised as a club" after spending the past two seasons "transitioning" from the Championship to the Premier League.

Speaking on the latest episode of Planet Premier League, Potter praised the Reds' progression: "They have transitioned from the team that looked a little bit chaotic, from the outside, in the early stages of their life in the Premier League.

"It isn't straightforward going from the Championship to the Premier League. There is no formula there to go: 'Oh, how do we survive this?'

"They have done it by signing lots of players - some of them have been good, some of them have been not so good - but I think they have settled on something now that looks structured.

"They look organised as a club, they made really good recruitment decisions in the summer, and they are in a fantastic position [so far this season]."

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Pat Nevin
Former footballer and presenter

Image source, Getty Images

Last week I answered a question about the most surprising team this season and plumped for Nottingham Forest. It got even better for them at the weekend with their win against West Ham and they now sit proudly and amazingly in third place after 10 games.

‌It is now beginning to feel less like a freakish set of results and more like a well organised, well balanced and growing team. Two former Chelsea academy graduate players in Ola Aina and Callum Hudson-Odoi caught the eye again this week.

‌So well done Forest and Nuno Espirito Santo. If they are still in third place in a month's time after facing Newcastle, Arsenal and Manchester City as well as Ipswich, they will have to be considered serious contenders for a top-six finish.

‌Although this isn’t quite the fairytale of Leicester City winning the league it would be the most unexpected story since the Foxes flew in the face of history.

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Former Arsenal sporting director Edu rejected a lucrative new contract to stay with the Gunners in favour of taking up a multi-club role with Nottingham Forest owner Evangelos Marinakis. (Mail), external

Premier League clubs have reserved the right to seek compensation for lost earnings if Manchester City are found guilty of breaching the league's financial rules. (Times - subscription required), external

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Former Nottingham Forest forward Robert Earnshaw joins The Football News Show to discuss why current Forest striker Chris Wood has started the season so strongly, why Taiwo Awoniyi is a capable understudy, and why losing Wood could upset the rhythm of the team.

Watch The Football News Show on iPlayer

Nottingham Forest have the fourth toughest fixture list in their next 10 games, according to Opta.

But with the Reds flying high in the Premier League, should fans be nervous about sliding down the table?

Forest fan Saveena Johal tells The Football News Show why she's confident in their improving home form and why the "sky's the limit".

Watch The Football News Show on iPlayer

Image source, Getty Images

Does Nottingham Forest's third-place position in the Premier League justify their spending in recent seasons?

Forest, under Steve Cooper, were promoted in May 2022 and signed a British-record 22 new players that summer and made five loan signings. Their net transfer spend over the 2022-23 season was £142.8m.

They were deducted four points for breaching Premier League profit and sustainability rules last season but re-enforced the squad in the summer with the likes of Elliot Anderson and Nikola Milenkovic.

"There's now almost a justification for their crazy spending because they have a foot-hold in the Premier League," said Chris Sutton on the BBC Radio 5 Live Monday Night Club. "No matter where they finish, they are not going to get relegated this season."

Rory Smith from the New York Times added: "I don't think we should whitewash their spending too much just because they've started the season well.

"The reason they were criticised for their spending was because so much felt like a waste. They signed a lot of players that are no longer there.

"They simultaneously committed the money that you need to compete in the league while being reckless."

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Pat Riddell
Fan writer

Image source, PA Media

Nottingham Forest are not going to finish in the top four this season. Or the top six. Are they?

Of course we are overperforming. Of course other clubs are underperforming. And really, any sensible fan knows that 19 points is more than halfway to Premier League safety after just 10 games.

And we know Manchester City, Liverpool and Arsenal are going to stay up there, while Chelsea, Aston Villa and Tottenham - despite their Jekyll and Hyde - moments will probably complete the top six. Probably.

But what if? What if Nuno Espirito Santo continues to work his magic?

This team is only just getting started. A settled squad it may be, but they are still getting to grips with each other and the manager's tactics. There are still the likes of Danilo, Ibrahim Sangare and James Ward-Prowse to return. The best of Taiwo Awoniyi is surely just around the corner. And the rest of the squad is flush with talent.

What if the Reds grind out results against Arsenal, City, Manchester United, Villa and Spurs before the end of the year? That will be halfway through the season, most of the toughest away games out of the way and an opportunity to strengthen in the January transfer window.

What if Chris Wood keeps scoring at the rate he is? What if the defence remains as solid as it has been? What if we get even better?

Nuno is rightly only ever concentrating on the next game and definitely not getting carried away. As he said after Saturday's 3-0 win over West Ham United: "If you get distracted, football doesn't forgive you."

But with Forest in their highest league position in 26 years, supporters are entitled to get carried away.

Even if the Reds are not going to finish in the top four...

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Former Premier League striker Chris Sutton told BBC Radio 5 Live's Monday Night Club that Nottingham Forest "don't over-play or over-press" and their performances have been a collective effort.

"Nuno [Espirito Santo] has his own identity and people may view that as negative but they have a lovely balance. And for all the criticism of the owner - and he has been heavily criticised over the past couple of seasons, and some it deservedly so - he is an owner who is super-ambitious.

"They've got the pace in wide areas and the skill in Hudson-Odoi and Elanga. They don't concede many goals and Milenkovic has been a sensational signing.

"And Chris Wood is banging the goals in. People call him old-fashioned but I think that's slightly unfair. He's an excellent centre-forward."

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Nottingham Forest would like to take 19-year-old Bayern Munich winger Mathys Tel on loan, but the France Under-21 international has no plans of leaving the Bundesliga giants this winter. (Sky Germany), external

Edu is set to take up a role within the network of clubs controlled by Nottingham Forest owner Evangelos Marinakis, after resigning as Arsenal's sporting director. (Times - subscription required), external

Want more transfer news? Read Tuesday's full gossip column