Sky Bet Championship club Nottingham Forest currently sit firmly in mid-table and their season now looks pretty much done and dusted.

With just 14 games left to play of the 2015/16 campaign, the Reds are 12 points away from the top six and must now go through the motions towards the end of the season.

Boss Dougie Freedman will be keen for his side not to take their foot away from the gas, and Forest will face Bristol City on Saturday looking to get back to winning ways, following two consecutive defeats.

The Reds haven’t tasted real success through the league for many years now with a series of managerial changes hampering the club’s chances in that sense, but with losses being reduced and a good squad being assembled, the Reds faithful will be hopeful that the good times are just around the corner.

Given the lack of success, Football League World set Lee Clarke to work on assembling a best Nottingham Forest XI of the last five years.....

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PRESS THE IMAGE BELOW TO SEE THE BEST XI!

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GK – Lee Camp

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Goalkeeper Camp has only really settled at two clubs throughout his career. One is hometown team Derby County and the other is Nottingham Forest, which would suggest he is something of a rare breed.

Camp was an integral piece of Nottingham Forest’s greatest seasons in recent times and played 163 times at a time when the Reds were regular contenders for the Championship play-off spots.

Admittedly his form dipped towards the end of his spell between the posts for Forest and a desire to move to the Premier League eventually saw him depart the City Ground.

Nonetheless, Camp was a safe pair of hands as the Reds’ custodian possessing an ability to pluck crosses out of the air, like no other keeper I have seen at the club.

RB – Chris Gunter

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Welshman Gunter was a model of consistency throughout his three years with the Reds and it was no surprise when he was eventually snapped up by a Premier League outfit.

It was somewhat surprising when Billy Davies tempted Tottenham into selling such a good, young right-back and Gunter never disappointed in a Forest shirt.

He was part of a pretty solid back four under Davies and played 133 times for the Reds before departing for Reading, in a transfer worth around £2 million.

A tremendous professional who gave blood, sweat and tears for the Reds during a successful period for the club.

CB – Wes Morgan

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One ounce of solace that could be taken from Leicester City winning the Premier League is that Nottingham’s very own Wes Morgan would lift the trophy for them.

If any ex-Forest player is deserving of success it is certainly the powerful defender Morgan, who must go down as one of the best defender the club has seen – certainly in recent times.

Morgan rose through the youth academy at the City Ground and played 352 times for the first-team in ten dedicated years with the club.

Due to financial problems at the club, the Reds were forced to sell Morgan for a measly £1 million, but those of a red persuasion still see Morgan as being very much ‘one of their own.’

CB – Michael Mancienne

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Over the last five years Forest haven’t been blessed with too many central defenders who possess pace. Enter ex-Chelsea youngster Mancienne.

When former boss Stuart Pearce parted with £1 million for the services of Mancienne from Hamburg, many Forest fans were unsure what to expect from a player who had just been part of a team who were nearly relegated from the Bundesliga.

The 28-year-old has slotted into the Reds’ back four with ease and the defensive unit is visibly stronger with Mancienne’s inclusion.

 

LB – Chris Cohen

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It is impossible to do this team and not include Mr Nottingham Forest, Chris Cohen, despite his injury problems of recent years.

Cohen gets in this team based on the 40 or so games he played for the Reds during the 2012/13 season, when he was voted as the club’s Player of the Year.

An integral part of the team during two play-off campaigns, the 237 games he has played for the club mean he is a well respected figure at Forest and every Red in the land will be hoping he can now stay injury-free.

RM – Michail Antonio

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An easy inclusion into the team, Antonio is arguably the best player the club has seen over the last five years.

His ability to grab a game by the scruff of the neck and single-handedly thrust Forest back into games is something I have never before seen at the City Ground.

The ex-Sheffield Wednesday man didn’t score bad goals and often took on three of four players before rifling an unstoppable shot past some poor, helpless goalkeeper who could only watch in disbelief.

Although a £7 million sale to West Ham United in the summer gave the club some much needed funds, I can’t help but think just how much higher in the league the Reds would be, had Antonio stayed for one more season.

CM – Adlene Guedioura

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When Steve Cotterill signed the Algerian midfielder on loan from Wolverhampton Wanderers, he was something of an unknown quantity to many Forest fans.

He impressed so much during his initial 19-game loan period that the Reds signed him permanently for a fee believed to be worth £1 million.

He played 40 games for the club during the 2012/13 season and produced some top quality performances in a Forest shirt.

Since his departure after one season at the club, Guedioura has been linked with a move back to the City Ground on a couple of occasions and given his affection for the club, it wouldn’t surprise me if he came back to Forest before his playing days drew to a close.

CM – Henri Lansbury

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Inevitably I will come in for some stick for this addition to my team but Lansbury has been a professional asset for Forest since arriving in 2012.

In just four seasons with the club he has amassed 121 appearances in the red of Forest, netting 24 goals along the way.

Lansbury offers midfield versatility and although he has been utilised in a more defensive capacity during the current campaign, he has also shown that he is comfortable when asked to move further forward.

He does seem to be a little bit like marmite with a lot of Forest fans, but the fact the Reds paid just £1 million for the 25-year-old makes him an absolute bargain in my eyes.

LM – Andy Reid

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Although Reid is still technically a Nottingham Forest footballer, it remains to be seen whether the ex-Republic of Ireland international will ever wear the famous red again.

A persistent groin problem has seen Reid miss the last 17 months and with the 33-year-old out of contract in the summer, his playing days look to be numbered.

That said, Reid was signed on a free by Steve McClaren back in 2011 and looked about three stone overweight, such was his lack of regular football before his City Ground return.

He proceeded to lose the weight and show the Forest faithful exactly what they had been missing and for three seasons he turned in several top quality performances, as the club flirted with the play-offs briefly.

ST – Robert Earnshaw

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Okay so Earnshaw’s best days in a Forest shirt were slightly over five years ago but given that he departed the club in 2011, I am including him.

The little, somersaulting magician was determined to prove a point at Forest, following a miserable spell with Derby County, and boy did he do that!

For starters he couldn’t help himself to a goal against the Rams and will go down in history as the man who scored the winner, the first time Forest were victorious at Pride Park – as it was called then.

In 98 appearances for the Reds he netted 35 goals and has Billy Davies chose to start him a little more often, he would probably have netted closer to 50 goals.

ST- Britt Assombalonga

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Something tells me I might get a little bit of stick for this one too, given that Assombalonga has only actually played 29 games for the Reds.

The ex-Peterborough United striker gets the nod based on his ability to score goals out of nothing and by virtue that he netted 15 goals during his first campaign with the club.

Despite missing the last 16 games of last season with his serious knee injury he still netted more goals in one season, than any striker in the last five years, making him a worthy inclusion into the team.

Assombalonga would have been a massive player for Forest this season and with every passing game, it looks more likely that he won’t be back in a red shirt until next season now.