Nottinghamshire

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Former Nottingham Forest midfielder Steve Hodge has been explaining what has sparked the club's "remarkable" turnaround, one year on from the Reds receiving a four-point deduction for breaching the Premier League's profit and sustainability rules.

Speaking on BBC Radio Nottingham's Shut Up and Show More Football podcast, Hodge said: "It's down to lots of different people. It's not just those on the pitch, but also those off the pitch - recruitment-wise and management staff.

"Everybody deserves a lot of credit around the football club. It is remarkable. I don't think anyone who thinks they know football would have had Nottingham Forest even in the top half of the table this season.

"So, as we approach April, to be in the top four or five for the whole season with 16 wins in the Premier League - that takes some doing. It has been deserved. I think everyone appreciates that this side have done a great job.

"They do need to keep their main players fit because they will still have issues with their squad depth and strength if some of those main players get injured, so touch wood on that.

"The success this season is down to the improvement of the players, the improvement in recruitment, how they have gelled together, the management and how the staff have structured the team.

"Also the players being self-motivated and happy with each other, wanting to run through brick walls for each other, gets results like they have got so far this season."

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Pat Nevin
Former footballer and presenter

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I make no apology for mentioning Nottingham Forest yet again.

It is like watching a rank outsider in a classic horse race like the Grand National or the Kentucky Derby. You constantly expect them to falter and be swallowed up by the field, but as they keep gamely battling on, every stride gets more people cheering them on to the end.

‌Another fine win against Ipswich gives them a seven-point cushion for the Holy Grail of a Champions League place.

The problem is that the others are ready to pounce if they do run out of legs. There will be no canter to the finish line for Forest, but I still hope they will make it.

They deserve it.

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Nottingham Forest captain Morgan Gibbs-White did not think the club would be fighting for Europe this season, but feels they "deserve" to be there.

It has been quite the turnaround for the Reds over the past year, having received a points deduction 12 months ago to now entrenched in the Premier League's top four.

The midfielder, who received a late call-up for Thomas Tuchel's first England squad at the weekend, has been reflecting on their rise.

"It's been a remarkable year," he told BBC Radio 5 Live. "Just to see where we have come from, from this time last year, is incredible. I think the Forest fans deserve that the most.

"Getting back into the Premier League was one thing. Scrambling in relegation for the two years we were in the Premier League obviously wasn't nice. It wasn't good, it wasn't enjoyable, but now we have given the fans something to cheer about."

Nuno Espirito Santo's side are currently third - six points clear of fifth-placed Manchester City with nine games remaining.

"The funny thing is that in pre-season we had belief that we could do something this season," Gibbs-White said. "Did we think to this level? Probably not, but we felt that we could achieve something good this season.

"With the pre-season we had under the manager, because he perfectly implemented his ideas, and his man management and his belief in his players, he really got to know everyone individually and I think that is what has helped us massively.

"So, did I think we would be in this position? No.

"Would I have snapped your hand off? Yes.

"I think we deserve to be in the situation that we are in. We work so hard, day in and day out, to achieve these goals."

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Nottingham Forest will qualify for the Champions League.

That's the view of Robert Earnshaw and the former striker has been telling The Football News Show why "brilliant" tactical setup and a lack of injuries have proven key.

Take in a clip below or watch The Football News Show detail the race for Europe in full here

Pat Riddell
Fan writer

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During Nottingham Forest's 23 years in the wilderness — apologies to the English Football League — statistics didn't mean a lot. The Reds either had enough points to avoid relegation or enough points to get into the play-offs.

The first two years back in the Premier League, and even early into this season, simply drew comparisons with Forest's meagre showing back in the 1990s. Not any more. All previous records of note have been swept aside.

Nuno Espirito Santo's side have been writing their own history this campaign. Saturday's 4-2 win over Ipswich Town was Forest's eighth away victory this season, a tally only bettered by Liverpool.

Beating Brighton & Hove Albion 7-0 last month was our biggest win since 1991 — before the Premier League came into being. Chris Wood's hat-trick that day was the first by a Forest player at the City Ground in the top flight since 1987.

Consecutive wins? The six back-to-back victories were the most in a single season since 1967. Clean sheets? Matz Sels has 12, more than any other goalkeeper in the league. Scored first? Forest have taken the lead 22 times, more than any other club, and very rarely lose from that position.

The manager's 50th game in charge saw us move five points clear of Chelsea and six points clear of Manchester City. And that's all before an FA Cup quarter-final — don't forget that Forest had never played at the 'new' Wembley until the Championship play-off final in 2022

Forest finished third back in 1995, qualifying for the Uefa Cup, when only the champions Blackburn Rovers ed Europe's elite competition. The promise of Champions League football remains very real, with a fifth place qualification spot almost in the bag for the Premier League. There are still nine games to go — "a lot of football to be played yet," as Nuno said – but the Reds have been in the top five since early December despite a sticky patch in recent weeks. How many more points do the Reds need to go the distance?

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Nick Mashiter
BBC Sport football news reporter

Exactly one year ago, around 2pm, Nottingham Forest were deducted four points and dropped into the Premier League's relegation zone.

The profit and sustainability breach - and punishment which came on 18 March, 2024 - put Forest's top flight future in jeopardy.

The club breached the threshold of £61m by £34.5m while an appeal two months later failed.

It added to a chaotic end to a season, which finished with Forest eventually beating the drop by six points and finishing 17th.

An explosive social media post questioning VAR Stuart Atwell's integrity after defeat at Everton came in April, with referee analyst Mark Clattenburg eventually stepping down two months later.

The fall out did not end until last week when the club lost their appeal against the £750,000 fine for the post.

Fastforward and Forest are on the brink of a remarkable achievement as they close in on Champions League qualification, having also reached the FA Cup quarter finals.

Third in the Premier League with nine games left and a six point advantage to Manchester City in fifth, the likely final place for a Champions League spot, there is no evidence or no signs Forest will implode from here.

They are on the cusp of a new era and returning to the European elite would unlock further riches for a club which has huge potential.

Nuno Espirito Santo has fostered a spirit which has propelled Forest into the top four as they chase a return to Europe for the first time since 1995-96 under Frank Clark.

The spirit is evident to anyone who has seen the squad on the pitch but especially off.

Goalkeeper Matz Sels told BBC Sport: "It's the gaffer who started it at the beginning of the season. Bringing that togetherness and of course, everything has to do with results but we started the season really well and then it's grows during the season.

"Something great started from the beginning of the season, maybe from the training camp in Spain where we were together. There you felt like something is possible."

Forest needed the right characters to add to the group who beat relegation and were surgical in the summer. There was no repeat of the trolley dash when 22 players arrived after promotion in 2022. They knew what they wanted.

Nikola Milenkovic arrived for under £12m from Fiorentina and immediately formed a rock solid partnership with Murillo, while Morato, another summer buy, providing able back-up.

Elliot Anderson, a big money arrival from Newcastle, has added depth and quality with Ramon Sosa and Jota Silva giving Nuno options off the bench.

That, coupled with 18-goal Chris Wood having the season of his life and the continued maturation of Morgan Gibbs-White, has helped build the perfect season for Forest.

From the chaos to the calm, what a difference a year makes.