Nottingham Forest manager Steve Cooper has insisted that he has a strong relationship with Lewis Grabban and that his experience is vital for the Reds.

Grabban has enjoyed a strong to Cooper’s time in charge at the City Ground and he has managed to score in three of the new Nottingham Forest manager’s first four matches.

The 33-year-old was on target for the third successive game in the Championship on Saturday when he netted the crucial winning goal for the Reds in the 61st minute. That took his tally to the season to five goals, which is now only one behind his total for the whole of last term.

The experienced striker’s current deal at the City Ground though is set to expire at the end of the campaign and that means that Cooper is going to have to make a decision over whether to potentially look to offer him a new deal.

 

 

Speaking to Nottinghamshire Live, Cooper suggested that Grabban’s experience is proving to be vital for the Reds and he is trying to get him to be a role model for the rest of the squad.

He said: “He’s the captain, and I value the role of the captain. I think it’s more than just wearing the armband on a Saturday.

“I think it’s about being a good role model. I think it’s about being selfless. I think it’s about taking a bit of rubbish off me and feeding it into the dressing room. I think it’s about him being slightly different in his relationship with me than anybody else, because I really value that.

“He’s experienced. His know-how is important. So I’ve talked about that with him.

“But I have one-to-ones with all the players, because I think that’s an important part of learning.”

On his relationship with Grabban and talks with the forward he added: “It’s a mutual relationship, open and honest. We’ve both agreed the parameters,” he said of Grabban.

“Nothing is off limits, because I need to know and he needs to know what we’re all thinking. That’s really important.

“He’s got loads of experience. He’s seen good moments and bad moments. I’d be foolish not to use that experience.

“He’s doing really well. He played well on Saturday and got the 90 minutes. He’s training well.”

The verdict

Cooper is managing Grabban’s situation very well so far and he seems to be handing him the confidence and the platform to start getting back to the sort of form we saw him produce in the 2019/20 season when he reached the 20 goal mark.

That might well be the difference for Forest in terms of how high up the table they can finish this term after what has been a very strong start to Cooper’s time in charge of the club.

Grabban is the sort of player that Forest need to try and keep hold of you feel for at least another two years maybe. So, with his contract running down it is important that Cooper is getting the best from him and that he is regular discussions with the forward.

It will be a big decision for both Forest and Grabban to make regarding his long-term potential future in the coming months, but they can not let that distract him from his current form.