The secrets of Forest’s story have been sewn at the training ground, where everybody from players to staff are aligned. In Saturday’s win over Arsenal, they devised a perfect plan to nullify the threat of Bukayo Saka and Martin Odegaard by restricting space and doubling up on them. They have demonstrated a reputation for responding from setbacks and performing under pressure. There has never been any question over the players’ commitment. While many of the clubs around them in the table, such as Leeds, Everton and Leicester, seem to have been in various levels of crisis, it has always seemed calm at Forest. 1 target last summer, Morgan Gibbs-White, has been arguably the player of the season and should be in contention for the senior England squad. The heroes from last season – Brennan Johnson, Ryan Yates and Joe Worrall – have also proved they belong at this level. Take Taiwo Awoniyi: in the first few months he was raw and clearly needed work, but finishes the season transformed with five goals in three games. He is first and foremost a coach, and almost all of the new arrivals have improved over the course of the season. To have that many new players, from different countries and different leagues, and still manage to build an identity, spirit and culture is why Cooper can reflect on an excellent season. There were 30 new signings, an abysmal away record, an alarming injury list, a World Cup break and scrutiny on his future but Cooper has completed the job, cementing his status as the best Forest manager since Frank Clark, or arguably even Clough himself.Ĭooper won’t win the Manager of The Year award, but finishing 16th or 17th is an achievement which cannot be overestimated. It is a message that perfectly encapsulates Cooper’s season in the Premier League, which is now ending in the triumph of survival despite many uncomfortable moments along the way. “Ease is a greater threat to progress than hardship.” In Steve Cooper’s office, next to the portraits of Nottingham Forest’s legendary manager Brian Clough, there is a canvas of actor Denzel Washington with a quote underneath.
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