Nottingham Forest Discussion Posts

24 Apr 2024 15:03:55
Hi all just about got over the weekend but something certainly smells funny with Attwell
He was the ref in charge when we played Bournemouth in the pen ultimate fixture of 21/ 22 season when a top two position was at stake to get promoted
He disallowed a perfectly good goal for Forest we went on to lose 1-0
He did apologise after for the mistake
Also start of the season he also reffed our game against MU he sent Worrall off and gave them a soft penalty when Rashford dived add that to last week end
Something stinks.

24 Apr 2024 12:44:07
Would O, Brien have contributed more than Sangare to our cause?
CARLO.

23 Apr 2024 14:17:54
Also does no one thinks Nuno needs time? His history speaks for itself and with a whole preseason to get it right I imagine he should get a chance? Who out of the current team would people like to see stay and go?

23 Apr 2024 15:18:59
Keep Murillo, Gibbs-White, Wood, Awoniyi ( possibly). Elanga.
That's it!.
Definitely no to the manager.

23 Apr 2024 22:17:12
Ditch Nuno. I'd have Psycho back for a second try in an instant. He bleeds Forest and would bring back the much-needed passion the club needs.

23 Apr 2024 22:55:03
Psycho was rubbish the first time and would be again great player for us but that's how I would like to remember him.

22 Apr 2024 23:37:57
Dire player recruitment; no passion within the club apart from when complaining; massive wasting of money; a woeful manager; FFP problems that shouldn't exist if the club was run properly; players that don't want to be here; promises of stadium improvements that will never happen; no entertainment watching spineless and woeful match performances; cringing, embarrassing club statements. Need I go on? I'm ashamed at what our once great club has become.

23 Apr 2024 11:03:36
All good points Legless. It is hard to argue against the fact that the club has let the fans down badly during our premier league time. What an opportunity it has been for us all, now look at everything. It isn't good. Shame! Could we have done better?

23 Apr 2024 11:29:42
100% agree with you Norfolk.

23 Apr 2024 13:40:09
We could have done much better guys.
The main disappointment is the terrible recruitment policy we adopted.
That was entirely down to Marinakis and his backroom staff.
No manager would want many new players whether that be Cooper or Santo.
We needed a dozen or so first season back in the Premier and we should have definitely kept Brennan this season.
Finances should have been planned around our very best players not the poor/ mediocre we bought.

23 Apr 2024 19:02:21
Good posts! Definately let down by the hierarchy of late ( though Mr M saved us from the ting post Fawaz, for which many many thanks).
I think the big mistakes have been….
Recruitment is haphazard and too many mediocre players. In fact too many full stop. I know we had to upgrade after late promotion through the playoffs but the squad was too big and bloated.

Nuno is proving to be not much of an upgrade on SC. But give him a pre season and see if he can make his mark. In the meantime the City Ground is no where near as feisty as it was.
Mr M cost us 4 points by ignoring FFP warnings and lied to the Supporters Trust about it. Unforgivable and reckless.

He has also flip flopped on strategy, getting rid of Dane Murphy and his successful strategy of recruiting young, talented and hungry players with a good sell on value. Instead too many injury prone older players in the twilight of their careers ( Kouyate, Boly, Felipe ) and some just rubbish ( Turner, Vlach, Sanghere (ok jury’s out on him) and don't even get me started on Arter.

Perhaps losing credibility ( although with provocation) with the public and media through hot headedness and rash statements. We will see how that pans out but it’s not looking good.
I believe we will scrape through this season but it will be a damn close run thing and will be done in spite of Mr M not because of him. But it’s going to be tight…. 🤞🤞🤞.

22 Apr 2024 13:50:18
As is my usual custom, I usually wait for 24 hours for the heat and passion to evaporate before I comment on a game. It might have been wise for the club to do the same before issuing that statement. I wonder who actually penned it? Something so inflammatory and angry would have had to be sanctioned by someone high up the Forest hierarchy. It certainly got the hot headed Greeks fingerprints all over it.

As for the game itself, a scrappy affair in which Everton took their 2 chances ( aided by slack closing down) and we fluffed ours. Which brings me on to the penalties.
I've watched them over and over again and all 3 were nailed on. Now, there's 2 ways of looking at the match officials.

They are either corrupt or massively incompetent. Unlike the Anderlecht match, it's difficult to get away with match fixing because of the advanced technology available now. However, if you don't actually use it and tell the ref he's made a mistake what is the point? It's not as though we have only grainy footage as in Belgium is it? It's not a good idea to call into question the integrity of Stuart Atwell but then again it's not a great idea to appoint a Luton fan for this particular match and ignore Forests pre match protest.

There is an old adage that justice must not only be done, it must be seen to be done. I'm sitting on the fence a bit. I wouldn't be surprised if Atwell was bent but officials are so dire these days ( and the use of technology available so arbitrary) that it could just be gross incompetence. Either way, we move on and accept the 3 points ( or 2 points ) lost.

Reasons to be cheerful.
Firstly, we don't concede from a set piece
Secondly, we might get one or 2 points back from our appeal result this week.
Thirdly, I still think one win and one draw will be enough.
We probably won't get owt from Man City but Luton won't get owt from Wolves away and Burnley won't get owt from Man Utd, Newcastle or Spurs.

Lastly we should use our justified sense of grievances to create a siege mentality to drive us on. It's us against the world and if we are being cheated out of it let's fight hard against the odds and show them.

As a footnote, we of course, look for guidance from The Master, Brian Clough. He famously didn't allow his teams to argue with refs. This attitude cost him his job at Leeds ( remember "you can throw all your medals and cups and pots and pans into the bin because you got them all by cheating "). He famously refused to do a press conference after Anderlecht until he had calmed down and gone home.

I think Cloughie preferred cricket to football ( and he was a very good cricketer) because of the respect shown to umpires and the sporting behaviour always shown. His football teams could always look after themselves if it got feisty ( with Lloyd and Burns in your team we were never going to be intimidated by anyone).

Not sure how this is going to pan out. It's certainly hit the national news ( just listening to it on Jeremy Vine). But do we want to be on the front page for the wrong reasons?

{Ed025's Note - good post that Stokey mate..

22 Apr 2024 17:03:59
Yes. Encapsulates a lot of posts Stokey a good read! My point is shorter: How will it help us in the longer run? Any cunning thoughts here? Might we get a better appeal result from the Commission or will it kibosh the process! Is any bad press for the refs good for us? In future games refs will not play the sympathy card, they can't, they might over compensate by being harder. Strange times indeed.

22 Apr 2024 17:57:37
We might get 2 more points taken off for the outburst.

22 Apr 2024 18:37:58
It is certainly strange times Norfolk mate when Jamie Carragher accuses us of having no class and being embarrassing with the added proviso that we should be punished! This from a man filmed spitting at a 12 year old girl in a car! 🤔🤔🤔.

22 Apr 2024 19:37:44
No Derby that’s not possible mate. Points deductions are entirely related to FFP. It will be a fine for bringing the game into disrepute. Hence the back tracking new Statement out today which should also help fend off civil action by Atwell for defamation damages.

22 Apr 2024 19:42:35
There is an excellent post on the Banter site by Scouseduck Red which points out the hypocrisy of punters like Carragher and Neville. Just imagine how much they’d be squawking if VAR was being done by a Man City fan when they played Liverpool or when Man City play Man Utd in the Cup Final!
Scouse makes the point that it’s not just games at the top of the table that are important! 👍👍.

22 Apr 2024 18:30:32
Thanks Ed 25 and Norfolk. I would think the Premiership will be glad to “lose “ our troublesome “little “ club but I still believe we can pull through to safety this season and rebuild for next. But first things first. After a pretty disastrous campaign with poor decisions made along the way at senior level ( FFP, lying to the Supporters Trust, poor player recruitment, getting rid of SC and with him the City Ground atmosphere etc) we need to achieve our “Dunkirk” type miracle and try to live to fight again another day.
I’m glad to see the club lawyers have drafted a more nuanced and watered down statement about VAR and Stuart Atwell after the hasty one issued just after the game.

{Ed025's Note - yeah that was a mistake Stokey (even though true), i think you will just have enough mate but as you suggest will need a reset next season, for me Nuno should be first out the door mate, but thats just me opining..

23 Apr 2024 20:01:06
Great post Stokey, great minds think alike. No plagiarism intended. 😇.

24 Apr 2024 11:44:40
Definitely no plagiarism Scouse mate it’s entirely YOUR perceptive and brilliant post. I was merely drawing other posters attention to it.
I’m reminded of the story of James McNeil Whistlers great put down of Oscar Wilde. Wilde was a great wit in his own right but he could also plagiarise other people’s remarks.
So, at a soirée Whistler made a remark which had his listeners doubled up with laughter. Oscar Wilde was present and said ( wistfully) “ I wish I’d said that James”
To which Whistler replied “Don’t worry Oscar dear boy, you will, you will”! 😂🤔.

22 Apr 2024 08:58:16
Rob Jones, Paul Tierney, Anthony Taylor and Stuart Atwell all should be suspended and disciplined for gross negligence and bias and if found guilty dismissed as referees.

22 Apr 2024 09:35:20
They'll all be suspended until we play Burnley and Sheffield United.

23 Apr 2024 15:59:10
They, ve both been selected for the Euro, s.
✌️✌️
CARLO.

22 Apr 2024 08:29:17
Well what has become of our great club. It's turning into a whinge pot of bitter acrimony. Theirs is a fine line between fairness and bullying or cheating. Never have I or will I be a fan of VAR, never will I be a fan of the corrupt premier league and actually couldn't give a toss if we get relegated. Has it been a great footballing theatre for us since getting promoted? Having said that in my honest opinion not one of those penalty shouts were stonewall and without the intervention of VAR in the cold light of day I saw nothing that warranted the ref pointing to the spot and giving us a goal scoring opportunity. The handball? Come on how close was that to young what choice did he have. Did it prevent a goal scoring opportunity NO. We all judge things now on the view of VAR, we've fallen into the trap of the luxury of the armchair ref with multiple unconvincing angles. They might be corrupt or biased but I've always that using VAR just gives another layer of opinion that is open to misinterpretation. It's utterly shameful the headlines that are going to haunt us and create a seige mentality that gives the under perorming player's credibility and justification to their total ineptness. I'm falling out with Nuno here too, he should have rejected all criticism of the refs and laid the blame squarely with himself and the players. The club have bought crap consistently where we build no momentum. There are players that beggar belief in their price and ability. That's where the problems lie.
So for the the ownership to tarnish our reputation with such statements is scandalous and reflects the attitude of their reputation in business etc. I'm all for challenging the authorities to make change, but that yesterday will give us attention we don't need, we're cry babies in everyone's eyes and the poor us syndrome will drag us into the gutter of footballing fairness.