In the end it was a season that finished in despair for Nottingham Forest, as they collapsed on the final day and failed to make the Championship play-offs.
Now though, with the release of the fixtures for next season’s Sky Bet Championship, Forest fans can stop dwelling on previous failings and focus on new beginnings.
They will kick-off against Queens Park Rangers at Loftus Road on September 12, a fixture they won 4-0 last season.
Last Season
To focus only on the end of the season would be an unjust reflection of the progress made by Sabri Lamouchi and his team before COVID-19 stopped football and Forest in their tracks.
It is still Forest’s highest finish since 2010-11 when Billy Davies was at the helm, and a late run of five wins out of six saw them finish sixth. Back then they were defeated over two legs by Swansea City, who went on to gain promotion to the Premier League.
It was on the eve of football’s return that Lamouchi signed a two-year contract extension, making him the first manager since Davies to get such a deal. This is a remarkable statistic that further goes to show how trigger-happy the Reds have been in the past.
Transfer News
Forest have also bolstered their ranks by signing Lyle Taylor from relegated Charlton Athletic and Tyler Blackett from Reading. They have also secured the signature of Jack Colback on a permanent deal from Newcastle United. The midfielder had been at Forest on loan last season.
Taylor said: “I’ll do my best to help this club get back to where they want to be.” Forest will be hoping that the striker can be the man to push them on towards the Premier League.
The Reds also know how important it will be to keep hold of Matty Cash, who has attracted a lot of interest from Premier League clubs and even Italy’s fallen giants AC Milan.
Facing The Rams
As ever the first name that Forest fans will look for on the fixture list will be local rivals Derby County, who they host on November 24, before travelling to Pride Park on February 27.
The Reds defeated County 1-0 at the City Ground, but were denied another victory in the return fixture when Chris Martin scored for Derby in the seventh minute of additional time to level the scores at 1-1.
Forest also ran out 3-0 winners when the two sides faced off in the EFL Cup second round in August.
Second-tier tears
This season will be the Reds 57th in the second-tier, making it the division they’ve have spent the most seasons in, surpassing the 56 spent at the highest level. This makes grim reading for Forest fans, who consider themselves as one of the biggest clubs in England.
First Five
QPR v Nottingham Forest – 12/09/20
Nottingham Forest v Cardiff City – 19/09/20
Huddersfield Town v Nottingham Forest – 26/09/20
Nottingham Forest v Bristol City – 03/10/20
Blackburn Rovers v Nottingham Forest – 17/10/20
For those teams wanting to secure promotion a fast start to the season is an essential and with these fixtures Forest will fancy their chances of doing just that.
The Run-in
Nottingham Forest v Huddersfield Town – 17/04/21
Birmingham City v Nottingham Forest – 20/04/21
Nottingham Forest v Stoke City – 24/04/21
Sheffield Wednesday v Nottingham Forest 01/05/21
Nottingham Forest v Preston North End – 08/05/21
It was this stage of the season that Forest fell apart last term, surely history can’t repeat itself.
By Alex Brinton