Nottingham Forest boss Steve Cooper has praised his side for never letting complacency creep into their game, speaking to Nottinghamshire Live ahead of their crunch tie with AFC Bournemouth tomorrow night.

The Reds currently sit just three points behind Scott Parker's men at this stage with just two league games left to go, with Forest's superior goal difference giving them an edge over their midweek opponents going into the final game if they win Tuesday evening's clash.

This would be a remarkable achievement for the East Midlands outfit considering they won just one point from a possible 24 during their opening eight league games of the 2021/22 campaign.

 

 

However, there's still a considerable amount of work to do and they will need to be on top form if they want to come out on top at the Vitality Stadium tomorrow evening, with Bournemouth having the home advantage and a real spring in their step following their 3-0 victory away at Blackburn Rovers at the weekend.

But the hosts will be under the most pressure in this one considering they have been in the top two for the majority of the campaign, potentially providing an advantage to Cooper's men as they travel to the south coast.

The visitors' manager will be hoping their side doesn't get too carried away though, a key strength the Welshman identified when addressing the media.

He said: "The good thing about this group is it doesn’t seem like they let complacency creep in.

"That’s very important to me, because I think you can have all the best ideas and strategies, but if you don’t have the right attitude and right work ethic, then a lot of the other stuff becomes irrelevant."

The Verdict:

Perhaps Forest will be feeling the pressure themselves considering they may be the favourites coming into this tie with the momentum they have, maximising their points return and giving themselves a sensational shot at the top two.

However, they should be reasonably relaxed ahead of this tie because they weren't even expected to be competition for automatic promotion up until recently, so they can be reasonably calm going into this one and should look to capitalise on any mistakes from Parker's side.

Parker will want his side to be brave with the ball and play their normal game tomorrow evening - and that always comes with risks so Forest will need to be focused and on their toes if they want to make the most of unforced errors.

Even if Bournemouth are reasonably tidy on the ball - Forest always take a positive approach and should do the same again on the south coast considering the solidity of Joe Worrall, Steve Cook and Scott McKenna - with those three able to bail the Reds out if they find themselves in danger.

And if Cooper's men do take the lead, you would certainly back them not to be complacent judging by Cooper's comments, something that will only serve them well in their quest to win a much-needed three points.