David Prutton makes Nottingham Forest claim following club’s triumph over Swansea | OneFootball

Sky Sports EFL presenter David Prutton has admitted that he believes that Steve Cooper has already created a clear identity for his Nottingham Forest squad since being handed over the reins at the City Ground.

Drafted in as a replacement for Chris Hughton, Cooper has completely transformed the Reds’ fortunes in the Championship as his side are now thriving at this level.

Currently on a eight-game unbeaten run in the second-tier, Forest recently backed up their triumph over Peterborough United by sealing an eye-catching 4-1 victory over Swansea City last weekend.

Philip Zinckernagel, Brennan Johnson, Cafu and Lewis Grabban all scored for their side in this fixture as the Reds swept aside the Jacks.

Forest are now only four points adrift of the play-off places and will be determined to close this particular gap when they face Hull City at the City Ground this weekend.

Making reference to his former side, Prutton has revealed that he believes that Cooper has been able to galvanize the club during his time in charge.

“He’s spoken about falling in love with the football club.”

Prutton later added: “He’s tapped into that kind of sense of pride and that consciousness that comes with knowing that Nottingham Forest is a big football club that should be doing better than it has been in the past 20 or so years, bouncing around outside the top division and moving all the way down into League One.

“But the way that he’s [got Forest] playing and what he did with Swansea and what he has done with Forest, wanting to play that way with athleticism and power from wider parts of the pitch and a real sense of being able to dominate the football I think if you’re a Forest fan you’re loving absolutely every single minute of what Steve’s done so far.”

The Verdict

It is hard to disagree with Prutton’s comments as Forest look like a completely different team under the guidance of Cooper compared to earlier this season.

As well as making some defensive improvements, the Reds have managed to find the back of the net in 11 of their last 14 league games.

When you consider that Cooper is currently able to call upon the services of Grabban, Joe Worrall and Brice Samba who have all demonstrated in recent seasons that they are able to deliver the goods at this level for Forest, there is no reason why his side cannot go on to challenge for a play-off place in the New Year.

After guiding Swansea to a top-six finish in each of the past two seasons, Cooper will unquestionably be confident in his ability to replicate this feat at the City Ground.