[FM23] Nottingham Forest: Mists Rolling In From The Trent

[Kasper Jameson]

 

A twenty-three year exile from the apex of English football. A nerve racking ninety minutes on a late Spring afternoon in Wembley. If you'd had asked any fan of Nottingham Forest - myself included - if we'd see the club walking away victorious at the home of football towards to the end of last season; I'd imagine that we would have laughed at your face! It's hard to forget that, as the 2021/22 EFL Championship Season was well into September, Forest were rock bottom of the league with zero wins in their opening seven games. Panic was a word often used by the media, who often described the club as one in crisis: both on and off of the pitch. The club's dire form on the pitch had, inevitably, cost Chris Hughton his job in the dugout. A manager known for his knack at getting clubs promoted out of the Championship, his defensive tactics and souring relationship with the fanbase ultimately led to his downfall.

It wasn't just the former manager who was facing backlash, but the owner as well. Regardless of opinions about Evangelos Maranakis, when he took over the club from the Fawaz Al-Hasawi in mid-2017, there were expectations of a revival under the Greek shipping magnate. It has taken it's time - with the club coming closest to a Playoff berth during the much delayed 2019/20 season; only to have Swansea City spoil the party. But that was the past. And with the departure of Chris Hughton, Forest turned to the services of Steve Cooper; and, as the ol' saying goes, the rest is history...

And this is where I find myself: managing Nottingham Forest in their return season to the Premier League on FM23.

The main objective of this save is to ensure that Forest are a stable Premier League clubs, whilst maintaining their long held policy of developing talented academy players and bringing them into the first team. I do also want to utilise the history of the club in my targets and ambitions for this save. Yes, that does mean I will be aiming to better Brian Clough's record at the club. Not an original idea, but one I shall be following up on nonetheless. 

CLUB HISTORY: A RECENT ACCOUNT OF TURMOIL AND REVIVAL

Rather than recall the history of the club from the days of it's inception to the reign of Brian Clough and Peter Taylor, I figured that it would be worth outlining a more recent account of Nottingham Forest's turbulent history over the last decade. There are a few reasons for this: I think I'd be wasting time retelling the accounts of Forest's European conquests; I think most, if not everyone on reading this, would be familiar in one way or another of the club; and, for the sake of context, the events of the last decade have had a great impact on how the club looks today! 

On July 11th 2012, it was made public that the Al-Hasawi family - based in Kuwait - had taken full ownership of the club. For those unfamiliar, Forest were in a dire state both on and off of the pitch. Back in February of that year Nigel Doughty, then chairman and financial benefactor of the club, had passed away. Coupled with Forest narrowly avoiding the drop into League One at the conclusion of the season and facing financial uncertainty, it meant that going into the pre-season, only a handful of first team players were on the books. 

The Al-Hasawi family commenced a mass overhaul - something which would become more and more common under their stewardship. Sean O'Driscoll was brought in to replace the outgoing Steve Cotterill and a couple million pounds was spent to overhaul the squad. The season started better than the previous; the club were yielding better results on the pitch and, by Christmas, were three points out from a Playoff berth. Surely nothing could stop the momentum. Following a Boxing Day victory away to Leeds United at Elland Road, fans learned that O'Driscoll had been dismissed as the manager of Forest. Out of the blue really doesn't say enough. It was quite the shock. A manager who was edging the club closer and closer to the Playoffs; who had a good enough relationship with the fans and was getting results on the pitch, was suddenly put out of a job by the owners. It just didn't make any sense. But, then the rumours began to gain traction. In some corners it was said that a decision had been made for O'Driscoll to be sacked on Christmas Day, only for Chief Executive Mark Arthur to refuse the order from chairman Fawaz Al-Hasawi. It was also reported that the Al-Hasawi family sought advice from the board of Hull City that they needed a manager with Premier League experience. Either way, this was the start of the downward spiral for the club in the modern era.

During December, Fawaz Al-Hasawi made the decision to become the sole Chairman of the football club and, with that, be in the firing line of the fans anger in the years ahead. He appointed former Aston Villa manager Alex McLeish as the new manager in what would be remembered as a dismal 40-day reign in the dugout. Throughout McCleish's short spell the club performed poorly on the pitch and a botched transfer for George Boyd, then of Peterborough United, would dominate the headlines over a 'failed eye test'. McCleish would depart the club only a few weeks after the Winter transfer window closed. 

Al-Hasawi opted to tap into some nostalgia in an effort to win back the support of the fanbase by rehiring Billy Davis, the manager who had led Forest to two consecutive Playoff Semi-Finals. The appointment coincided with Al-Hasawi speaking more and more to the media, and making such lofty claims that Davis was the club''s equivalent to Sir Alex Ferguson and seeing Forest return to the Champions League at some point in the future. It all backfired, as results on the pitch continued to diminish and Davies would go on to impose a media blackout during his second spell at The City Ground. It would cost the Scotsman his job, and would further dent the credibility of Al-Hasawi. 

Stuart Pearce, Dougie Freedman and Phillipe Montanier were all brought in to steer the ship but, with the continued meddling of a paranoid Chairman, they all wouldn't last. Coupled with unpaid wages, bills and a transfer embargo, the writing was on the wall. The fans had had enough: it was clear that Fawaz Al-Hasawi had to go! Following a 3-0 victory over Ipswich Town on the final day of the 2016-17 season, Al-Hasawi confirmed that the club had been sold to Greek shipping magnate, Evangelos Marinakis. 

Whilst results on the pitch were slow during the first few seasons under Marinakis' tenure as owner, the 55-year old began to invest heavily in the redevelopment of the club's academy and training facilities; as well as submit and see the approval of a proposed £50 million redevelopment of The City Ground. For club that had been neglected off the pitch for almost a decade, it was welcomed news for the fans and the city as a whole. 

It wouldn't be until the conclusion of the 2021/22 season that the long game had paid off for Marinakis; as he would be the owner to see Forest return to the bright lights of the Premier League. And that, is where we find ourselves today...

Now, I can only apologise for the long intro to this save, but it is incredibly important to establish context as to how far the club has come over the past decade. Considering that Forest faced the possibility of relegation to League One on two separate occasions, and the threat of administration, it has been a journey of highs and many lows. Plenty of clubs across the country have faced similar situations over the past decade - many of whom who haven't been so lucky. But looking at the lessons of the past can certainly help to prepare you for the future, and that's how I intend to approach this save with Nottingham Forest.

The Academy, Player Development & Recruitment

I've discussed the turbulent period that Nottingham Forest have endured over the past decade but perhaps it is worth noting that one of the highlights during those troubled days was the plethora of academy graduates that came through the ranks. Some have been able to stay and contribute greatly to the club's turn in fortunes. Club captain Joe Worrall and Vice-Captain Ryan Yates are still considered one-club players and have become fan favourites: both for their loyalty to the badge and their commitment both on and off the pitch. These two were mainstays in the promotion campaign last season and will likely play key roles in the campaign to come. 

Perhaps the most exciting prospect to emerge from the academy is Wales international, Brennan Johnson. Following a stellar breakout season at The City Ground last season - where the 21-year old scored 16 goals in 46 league appearances - big things are expected of Johnson for the season ahead: where he'll likely spearhead our attack as we aim to push for Premier League survival. Keeping a hold of Brennan will be a challenge in itself, but my long term aim is to build the first team around the talented youngster. 

Which does lead me on to discussing the summer recruitment drive that the club underwent. Oh boy... 22 players signed and £145,800,000 spent! Talk about an overhaul. Now, I could spend the next few paragraphs discussing how each and every signing will fit into my plans for the season ahead, but I will leave that for the next entry where I plan to outline my tactical set up for the season ahead.

But would be an injustice to not address what many onlookers consider to be the elephant in the room: a newly promoted club outspending the majority of top European clubs on incoming players. This has been a common case over the past few seasons: most notably with Fulham and Norwich City. Of course, what followed with those two clubs was relegation from the Premier League and it's been hard to shake the label. My aim is to prove the doubters wrong and ensure that we put all of those signings to good use and ensure that this club thrives and prospers. This does mean being more fiscally minded in the seasons ahead - maybe I'll adopt a Moneyball approach. This is subject to debate...

Final Thoughts...

There is a lot that I want to accomplish with Nottingham Forest and the main focus of the save will be centred on turning the club into a Premier League mainstay. I do have a list of objectives and targets that I will hope to tick off as the save progresses, and these will be outlined in the next entry. I did think long and hard about perhaps taking the Wales National Team job if the opportunity arose, mainly to further develop Brennan Johnson, but I have opted to just keep myself at The City Ground for the duration of this save. At the end of the day, I'm not looking to overdo myself and to keep it as simple and fun as I can.

If you have read all the way to this point, I really appreciate it. Any feedback, advice or words of encouragement is greatly apricated and I'll do my best to respond as quickly as possible. I'm really excited to be kicking off this journey and cannot wait to bring out the next post.

 

[lied90]

while they have troubles making the team gel in real life, some of the players brought in look very good on FM imo. Best of luck.

[deltablue]

Good luck with survival.

[Kasper Jameson]

On 20/12/2022 at 09:28, lied90 said:

while they have troubles making the team gel in real life, some of the players brought in look very good on FM imo. Best of luck.

The team cohesion is certainly going to be an early challenge to address - not really at the highest level right now. But the crop of players brought in makes it all the more exciting. Really looking forward to seeing how I can get the best out of Freuler at the heart of the midfield. Plus Niakhate looks to be the real deal and could help shape up the defence - if he avoids an early injury like he did irl. Ta for the luck!

On 20/12/2022 at 10:58, deltablue said:

Good luck with survival.

We're going to need every bit of luck! Gonna be a tough ol' season ahead.