'What a difference a year makes'

Exactly one year ago, around 2pm, Nottingham Forest were deducted four points and dropped into the Premier League's relegation zone.

The profit and sustainability breach - and punishment which came on 18 March, 2024 - put Forest's top flight future in jeopardy.

The club breached the threshold of £61m by £34.5m while an appeal two months later failed.

It added to a chaotic end to a season, which finished with Forest eventually beating the drop by six points and finishing 17th.

An explosive social media post questioning VAR Stuart Atwell's integrity after defeat at Everton came in April, with referee analyst Mark Clattenburg eventually stepping down two months later.

The fall out did not end until last week when the club lost their appeal against the £750,000 fine for the post.

Fastforward and Forest are on the brink of a remarkable achievement as they close in on Champions League qualification, having also reached the FA Cup quarter finals.

Third in the Premier League with nine games left and a six point advantage to Manchester City in fifth, the likely final place for a Champions League spot, there is no evidence or no signs Forest will implode from here.

They are on the cusp of a new era and returning to the European elite would unlock further riches for a club which has huge potential.

Nuno Espirito Santo has fostered a spirit which has propelled Forest into the top four as they chase a return to Europe for the first time since 1995-96 under Frank Clark.

The spirit is evident to anyone who has seen the squad on the pitch but especially off.

Goalkeeper Matz Sels told BBC Sport: "It's the gaffer who started it at the beginning of the season. Bringing that togetherness and of course, everything has to do with results but we started the season really well and then it's grows during the season.

"Something great started from the beginning of the season, maybe from the training camp in Spain where we were together. There you felt like something is possible."

Forest needed the right characters to add to the group who beat relegation and were surgical in the summer. There was no repeat of the trolley dash when 22 players arrived after promotion in 2022. They knew what they wanted.

Nikola Milenkovic arrived for under £12m from Fiorentina and immediately formed a rock solid partnership with Murillo, while Morato, another summer buy, providing able back-up.

Elliot Anderson, a big money arrival from Newcastle, has added depth and quality with Ramon Sosa and Jota Silva giving Nuno options off the bench.

That, coupled with 18-goal Chris Wood having the season of his life and the continued maturation of Morgan Gibbs-White, has helped build the perfect season for Forest.

From the chaos to the calm, what a difference a year makes.