Nuno Espirito Santo opens up on Nottingham Forest’s recent struggles after defeat to Brentford | OneFootball

Nottingham Forest manager Nuno Espírito Santo admits they are “struggling in some aspects” after their 2-0 loss at home to Brentford.

Goals from Kevin Schade and Yoane Wissa prevented Forest from climbing back into the top five, denting their Champions League hopes.

Nuno admitted that the two goals they conceded were easily avoidable, with two similar long balls exploiting Forest’s backline.

“[They were] two situations that we should’ve done much better. Very similar, defensively,” he said.

“It’s one of the things that we’ve been talking about ourselves, the way we are as a team. We didn’t allow too many situations. We have clean sheets. This is our main and basic pillar and today was the other way around. With credit to Brentford, but I believe that situations, with a better approach, could easily be solved.”

Espírito Santo also conceded that the FA Cup semi-final loss to Manchester City had a physical impact on the players, meaning they could not play with a higher tempo and take the game to Brentford.

He continued: “There’s a lot of things going on. We are not settled down. There is a lack of communication. You can see the players don’t trust their decisions now. All this had to do with the mental aspect.

“But from the FA Cup semi-final there’s a fitness issue in our players. Now, we have to recover them and choose wisely, so we can have as many as possible [available] to compete in these four games.”

While there is belief that Forest can go on to achieve a Champions League finish, Nuno was adamant that there is something that has caused the Reds’ recent drop-off in performances.

“I see belief, desire and commitment. But the reality is that we are struggling in some aspects of our game. [Our] focus and [our] determination is on this practical and solvable solution.

“We have to go back and find our better version. We are clear in how many times we speak about how we play. Our basics are compact and solid. We don’t give away chances. Our opponents have to make much more to achieve what they did today, with all respects to Brentford.”

Nottingham Forest have four important games left to secure a top-five finish, with a trip to London to face FA Cup finalists Crystal Palace up next.