The Daly Brief | Forest vs Spurs, Premier League | OneFootball

"Juggling league and European duties is a challenge for Nottingham Forest, but Sean Dyche has steadied the ship. Meanwhile, will Thomas Frank turn to Xavi Simons in the 10 position again for Spurs after back to back starring performances?"

Rob Daly, official club commentator, presenter and pundit

Forest's fundamentals...

After Ange Postecoglou’s reign as Forest boss ended in October, Forest turned to a manager that, stylistically, was a closer match to previous manager, Nuno Espirito Santo. Sean Dyche has The Reds playing in a 4-2-3-1, and the team are already running further per game - and sprinting more too - under his guidance. Spurs can expect a physical battle and direct play, with striker Igor Jesus leading the line right now in the absence of the injured Chris Wood. The proportion of their passes being played long has gone up with Dyche, while they’re a team comfortable not having the ball - Forest enjoyed just 26% of the possession during their recent 3-0 win at Liverpool.

Mr Anderson...

Elliot Anderson is one of the Premier League’s most talked about midfielders and an England starter. The former Newcastle man ranks top in the Premier League for duels won (117) and touches (1388). His numbers for successful short passes (sixth best in the Premier League) and total passes (fourth) are impressive too. "Over-coaching someone is something you've got to be careful with, we're allowing him to go and play, and just give him some guidance and pointers” said Dyche recently. Anderson was arguably Forest’s stand out player in their win at Spurs last season too and scored a stunning goal in front of the South Stand.

The midfield battle...

So, who will play alongside him? Ibrahim Sangaré has been in the double pivot of Forest’s 4-2-3-1 in recent games. However Douglas Luiz, the Brazil international on loan from Juventus, returned from injury midweek at Utrecht and will be pushing for successive starts. Ahead of them is Morgan Gibbs-White, who recently scored in three successive league games against Manchester United, Leeds and Liverpool. For Spurs, if Rodrigo Bentancur comes back in he’ll likely be tasked with stopping Forest’s number 10. Derailing Anderson, a bundle of energy all over the pitch, will have to be a team effort.

X-factor Xavi...

Xavi Simons has had his stand out week as a Spurs player, putting in man of the match performances against Brentford and Slavia Prague. Playing in the 10 position, he scored two goals and claimed one assist across those games, and with great defensive attention on him - Xavi is having to drag opposition players all over the place. Slavia, like Brentford, went man-for-man with their marking on Tuesday night. “It doesn't matter where you go on the pitch, they will follow you, and you have to try to move them into spaces” explained the Dutchman, who acknowledges he’s in a good place “I feel comfortable getting onto the ball, playing, trying to put my team-mates into better positions. I’m really happy to feel like this and we must continue like this.” Keep an eye out for Djed Spence turning up in more central positions too from left-back when Spurs attack, with the left-winger (Wilson Odobert or Randal Kolo Muani recently) tasked with hugging the touchline and looking to run at their full-back one-vs-one.

Last time at the City Ground...