Nottingham Forest defender Joe Worrall has suggested that he wants to be handed the chance to be the club’s captain on a permanent basis next season after performing well in the role of late.

The 24-year-old has been one of the Reds’ most influential performers throughout the campaign and especially in recent weeks with him having stepped up to fill the captaincy in the absence of Lewis Grabban through a hamstring injury. Worrall has been able to form an excellent partnership with Tobias Figueiredo at the heart of the defence in recent times.

The 24-year-old has demonstrated that he can help to lead the side through matches with his commanding presence on the field. He has also led by example and has been averaging 1.1 interceptions, 4.3 clearances and winning 3.6 duels per game this term in the Championship (Sofascore).

Speaking to Nottinghamshire Live, Worrall outlined that he has relished stepping into the captain role at the City Ground in recent times and suggested that he is wanting to become the permanent captain at the club moving forwards into next season.

He said: "I'm relishing having the armband at the moment and I think that's something that I want to have on a more permanent basis looking into next season.

"It's something that other players need to need to strive for as well - to be leaders on the pitch and to really push us up the table."

The verdict

This is something that would make perfect sense for the Reds to do given how influential Worrall has been in recent weeks. The defender will likely have been impressing Chris Hughton with his leadership qualities and you could see the Nottingham Forest boss wanting to keep him with the armband to maintain the consistency he has found in his side in recent months.

Worrall is someone who has attracted plenty of transfer interest in the past, with the likes of Burnley having been consistently linked with a move for him. Therefore, offering him the captaincy on a permanent basis would go a long way to convincing him to stay with the club if any concrete interest in him were to emerge in the summer.

The 24-year-old clearly sees his long-term future with Forest and is waning to take responsibility and step up and become the go-to player in the dressing room. You imagine he would be a popular choice amongst supporters. However, it would be interesting to see how Grabban would react to be stripped of the captaincy.