Former Nottingham Forest star Viv Anderson believes Martin O'Neill is the right man to take the Reds back to the Premier League, as reported in the printed edition of The Football League Paper (24th Feb, Page 4).

Anderson, a former team mate of O'Neill, played 328 times for Forest winning two European Cups as well as a league title.

He believes that the Reds' 20-year absence from the top flight could be coming to an end under the watchful eye of O'Neill and his chosen right hand man, Roy Keane.

"If anybody knows how to get out of that division, it's Martin," he claims.

 

"I can't think of anyone better to get them going in the right direction. Roy Keane is a good appointment as well. He's another one who knows what the club is about. It seemed a strange combination at the time - their personalities are from completely opposite ends of the spectrum, but it works. They got performances out of the Irish that nobody could have imagined."

He then went on to truly whet Forest fans appetites by drawing comparisons between them and the unique double act that saw the Nottingham side become one of the most feared in Europe.

"It's a bit like Brian Clough and Peter Taylor isn't it? Good cop, bad cop - only the other way round."

Clough and Taylor became legends at the City Ground after ending up at Forest from Derby County.

They won the old First Division with the Rams, but later left and wound up at Forest where they repeated the feat, throwing in two European Cups and a European Super Cup for good measure.

The modern-day Forest play Derby County this evening in the East Midlands derby, knowing that a win will take them to within a point of their bitter rivals and just three points outside the top six.

[ad_pod ]

The Verdict

I think Anderson is right.

Forest have ambled around for so long with managers who don't understand the soul of the club.

Look at Solskjaer at Manchester United. He's not a 'great' manager as such, but he understands the club and the culture.

If you get that, what a club is about and how the fans feel and act, then you're halfway there. Few understand Forest like Keane and O'Neill and for that reason, they can be a success.