Take a glance at the Premier League table and the club which immediately catches the eye are Nottingham Forest sitting up there in third place. They are not really supposed to be there cheekily looking down on the likes of Chelsea, Arsenal and Aston Villa. Okay, it probably won't last but they will enjoy it while they can.
Since returning to the top flight in 2022 for the first time in 23 years Forest's main concern has been avoiding relegation, reflected in their final positions in the last two seasons, finishing in 16th and 17th place respectively.
But so far this season they are seeing things from a different perspective. Manager Nuno Espirito Santo has guided them to five wins, four draws and just one defeat. This includes an impressive victory away to Liverpool and sharing the spoils at Chelsea and Brighton.
There have been some key factors in their greatly improved situation. The most obvious is the form of 32-year-old New Zealand centre forward Chris Wood who has scored eight goals, well supported by a lively forward line including left winger Callum Hudson-Odoi who scored the winner at Anfield.
There have been significant improvements in defence too with Nikola Milenkovic and Brazilian Murillo formidable at the back. Belgian goalkeeper Matz Sels has also added stability to the defence.
The Forest fans have played their part too. The City Ground has become something of a fortress with the crowd really rocking. It is a long time since they enjoyed any prolonged success in the Premier League. However, they have some tough games coming up starting with tomorrow's home fixture against Newcastle United.
The chief architect of Forest returning to the top flight was former manager Steve Cooper, who has since moved on to Leicester City.
Cooper joined Forest in September 2021 with the club bottom of the Championship after losing six of their first seven games under Chris Houghton. Relegation was beckoning. Somehow Cooper transformed the team to the extent they finished fourth in the league, going on to overcome Huddersfield in the playoff final to clinch the return to the Premier League.
Their reincarnation has taken place under the auspices of the ambitious Greek millionaire owner Evangelos Marinakis who took over the club in 2017. Marinakis is a flamboyant figure and his actions have sometimes landed him in trouble. He is currently serving a five-match stadium ban for allegedly spitting at officials after disputing a decision.
Forest have an intriguing history. Apart from winning two FA Cups back in 1879 and 1959 they did not really hit the limelight until the great Brian Clough took over for a hugely successful 18-year reign from 1975-1993.
It was extraordinary what Clough achieved with this small unfashionable club which had been floundering in the old Division Two when he took over. His first major success was winning the league title in 1978 followed by two European Cup trophies in 1979 and 1980. Later came two League Cup titles.
Modesty was never one of Clough's strong points and in his autobiography he wrote: "Nottingham Forest will never know how lucky they were that day they asked me to rebuild their run-down club." He had a bit of help from some talented players including John Robertson, Peter Shilton, Viv Anderson and Tony Woodcock. A little later came Stuart Pearce and Nigel Clough, the manager's son.
Those were the glory days, but one suspects Clough would be very pleased if he could see where his old club are today.
Since returning to the top flight in 2022 for the first time in 23 years Forest's main concern has been avoiding relegation, reflected in their final positions in the last two seasons, finishing in 16th and 17th place respectively.
But so far this season they are seeing things from a different perspective. Manager Nuno Espirito Santo has guided them to five wins, four draws and just one defeat. This includes an impressive victory away to Liverpool and sharing the spoils at Chelsea and Brighton.
There have been some key factors in their greatly improved situation. The most obvious is the form of 32-year-old New Zealand centre forward Chris Wood who has scored eight goals, well supported by a lively forward line including left winger Callum Hudson-Odoi who scored the winner at Anfield.
There have been significant improvements in defence too with Nikola Milenkovic and Brazilian Murillo formidable at the back. Belgian goalkeeper Matz Sels has also added stability to the defence.
The Forest fans have played their part too. The City Ground has become something of a fortress with the crowd really rocking. It is a long time since they enjoyed any prolonged success in the Premier League. However, they have some tough games coming up starting with tomorrow's home fixture against Newcastle United.
The chief architect of Forest returning to the top flight was former manager Steve Cooper, who has since moved on to Leicester City.
Cooper joined Forest in September 2021 with the club bottom of the Championship after losing six of their first seven games under Chris Houghton. Relegation was beckoning. Somehow Cooper transformed the team to the extent they finished fourth in the league, going on to overcome Huddersfield in the playoff final to clinch the return to the Premier League.
Their reincarnation has taken place under the auspices of the ambitious Greek millionaire owner Evangelos Marinakis who took over the club in 2017. Marinakis is a flamboyant figure and his actions have sometimes landed him in trouble. He is currently serving a five-match stadium ban for allegedly spitting at officials after disputing a decision.
Forest have an intriguing history. Apart from winning two FA Cups back in 1879 and 1959 they did not really hit the limelight until the great Brian Clough took over for a hugely successful 18-year reign from 1975-1993.
It was extraordinary what Clough achieved with this small unfashionable club which had been floundering in the old Division Two when he took over. His first major success was winning the league title in 1978 followed by two European Cup trophies in 1979 and 1980. Later came two League Cup titles.
Modesty was never one of Clough's strong points and in his autobiography he wrote: "Nottingham Forest will never know how lucky they were that day they asked me to rebuild their run-down club." He had a bit of help from some talented players including John Robertson, Peter Shilton, Viv Anderson and Tony Woodcock. A little later came Stuart Pearce and Nigel Clough, the manager's son.
Those were the glory days, but one suspects Clough would be very pleased if he could see where his old club are today.
