NOTTINGHAM FOREST BLOG: Good luck Dougie! Reds hot seat is a poisoned chalice

It has been a predictably disastrous tenure for the former England skipper, but he will always be loved by the Forest faithful for his time here as a player. Ironically, despite being the better side last Saturday (only just) there was a touch of fate about the way the game was lost. Stephen McLaughlin’s error was not the sole reason for Psycho’s departure but it was indeed the final nail in the coffin. In a perverse kind of way I was almost glad that we lost to Millwall; a shocking thing to say I must admit. But it had the desired effect, we are now seven points off the relegation zone and the prospect of actually going down is very much a reality.

No sooner had Dougie Freedman been announced as the new boss I began to see a wave of negativity across the various social media outlets. These are the very people who begged for the likes of Davis and Pearce, and what did either of them do for us exactly? Forest fans need to get real for a change, we are not champions of Europe anymore and have not even been in the top tier of English football for over a decade. Before Clough, we had only won two major trophies in one hundred and ten years; the FA cup wins of 1898 & 1959. Under Clough’s management we won every other trophy going and since his departure we have not won a major trophy since. The championship is not a major trophy by the way, for those who want to mention the Dave Bassett season.

In fact, the Forest job has become a poison chalice. Forget about your big names because they have all failed miserably in the past, Ron Atkinson and David Platt are another couple of dead beats that got your tongues wagging. Dougie Freedman did a great job at Palace, with no money and a tiny squad; at a time when the club almost went out of business too. He saved them from relegation and reached the semis of the League Cup before heading to Bolton. Admittedly his time at Bolton was inconsistent, having just missed the play offs in his first season he struggled to recreate that form in the next.

I would like to think that he will be welcomed by the fans at the City Ground, where he bagged 18 goals in 70 appearances for us. He is no stranger to the club and I really believe he can do the business here. Remember when Charlie McParland and Frank Barlow had a spell in charge? Exactly the same scenario, all the sour faced, silver fox brigade turned their noses up at them, Until they nearly got us promoted from League One!

My advice is simple, stop living in the past and take note of the Eddie Howe’s and Mark Warburton’s of this world. Are they big names?

By Steve Corry