One of the messages Nuno Espirito Santo conveys to his players almost daily is simple: even if you are on the bench, you can expect to have an impact on the game. At Nottingham Forest, everyone has a role to play.
And the Portuguese manager backs up his words with action. In eight out of the nine Premier League games this season, Nuno has used all five substitutes. In the other, against Wolves in August, he used four.
In all, he has used 44 of his 45 possible changes. He is not alone at the top: Bournemouth, Ipswich and West Ham have also used 44 subs. Four other teams have used 43.
“Now the game has allowed us to make five subs, that has changed a lot around the game,” said Nuno in a recent press conference.
“The message is clear: it doesn’t matter if you start or not. Even if you play one minute, you can still have an impact defensively or offensively. It’s about being ready to play, relying not only on who starts but having a big trust in who is going to come on and produce what we want to produce.
“The game has moved on — the intensity nowadays is so demanding. Particularly in the positions requiring a lot of energy; if you want to press or recover the ball after 60 minutes of football when the tempo is so high, fresh legs help. We hope the players continue to understand it and that the belief is still there because this is our philosophy.”
Jota Silva is yet to start a Premier League game for Forest since his summer move from Vitoria de Guimaraes. But he has come off the bench eight times (playing a total of 159 minutes) making him the second-most utilised substitute in the division, behind Jhon Duran of Aston Villa.
Ramon Sosa — a man who has come off the bench five times (81 minutes played) — combined with Jota to net the equalising goal in the 2-2 draw at Brighton in September. And then there is Neco Williams, who has struggled to pin down a starting spot at Forest this season. Since starting three games in August, Williams has made six sub appearances, but his versatility is key for Forest.
Nuno’s most memorable use of subs so far this season was against Liverpool at Anfield. Anthony Elanga and Callum Hudson-Odoi were introduced in the 61st and 54th minutes respectively, and it was Elanga’s superb crossfield ball which put Hudson-Odoi in a position to cut inside from the left wing and deliver a curling right-footed shot to win the game 1-0.
“The subs who have come on, they are making such an impact,” says Forest captain Ryan Yates. “I have never been in a team where subs come on to make such a difference — whether by seeing it (the game) out or getting us goals. That just shows the togetherness in the group.
“(The) lads might be disappointed when they are not in the team, but they never show it. That is a massive strength.”
Talk to Forest players and they will tell you that there are no bad characters in this squad. There are probably two players, Andrew Omobamidele and Harry Toffolo, who might not feel they have a realistic chance of being in the starting XI for any given game. But even they are positive personalities. Toffolo is regarded as being one of the most professional and grounded men in the squad.
Yates feels that the sense of togetherness was helped by the careful work done in the last transfer window, when Forest strengthened well and early, giving the new arrivals the chance to acclimatise during pre-season. The two most significant additions, Nikola Milenkovic and Elliot Anderson, both arrived by mid-July.
“Keeping the core of players was important. If you are chopping and changing that group — as we have done in previous years — lads can come in with a different playing style or a different way in which they might go about things, day to day,” said Yates, when asked by The Athletic where that sense of unity comes from.
“What I can say about the manager is that he is so consistent. We have made a really good start. But I know this week he will just be ‘West Ham, West Ham, West Ham’. He is so on one level. That is good for players. He keeps us grounded. He always wants us to improve and I would like to think that myself and a few others in the dressing room reality drive that culture.
“We have seen some very difficult times at this club and we have seen where we are now… but let’s not get too high or be too disappointed if a result does not go our way. The main thing for the manager is that we always focus on the process. The days off remain the same, whether we win or lose. He is really honest. He just wants the best from us every single day.”
Four of Yates’ first five appearances this season came off the bench, with Forest having added Anderson and James Ward-Prowse to strengthen their midfield options this season. But following injuries to Ibrahim Sangare and Danilo, Yates has again established himself as a key figure.
“People can speak about the dressing room, but the proof is in the pudding when people are coming off the bench — probably really disappointed not to start — and they still give everything for the team,” he said.
“I like to think that is something I would do: fight even harder, show the manager that I should be playing. That is the only way to go about it. That has been a huge strength for us and I just want to see that continue.”
At Chelsea, in the aftermath of Ward-Prowse’s 78th-minute red card, Forest made three changes, with Williams, Elanga and Morato all introduced within four minutes. They held out for a 1-1 draw.
Morato is regarded as a solid signing, even though he has played only 70 minutes of football within five substitute appearances. Every time he has been introduced, he has added another layer of defensive steel and fortitude.
Morato was among the four changes made in the final 12 minutes of the 1-0 win over Crystal Palace on October 21. Adding a third central defender and freshening up in the full-back roles is another regular Nuno habit. But in the 3-1 win over Leicester, it was Jota, Sosa and Taiwo Awoniyi who came on to keep Forest’s attacking threat fresh and ensure their hosts remained on the back foot.
Forest will continue to try to get Awoniyi minutes off the bench to ensure the Nigerian international has match sharpness, should Chris Wood succumb to injury. Forest hoped Awoniyi would start Nigeria’s game against Libya during the last international break, only for the game to be postponed after a chaotic situation that saw the Nigeria squad effectively abandoned at a Libya airport for 12 hours. Nuno felt that was a “step back” in Awoniyi’s progress.
”You don’t know what is going to happen — or when it’s going to happen. So what you have to ensure is that every player in your squad is ready to go — even though he is not playing a lot,” said Nuno in a recent press conference. “We are trying to take really good care of Taiwo’s situation.”
Awoniyi has so far had 97 minutes on the pitch, following one start and five sub appearances.
Not every sub has been a success; Toffolo was unfortunate when he saw an attempted clearance fall kindly for Antoine Semenyo to equalise late on in the 1-1 draw with Bournemouth on the opening day. Nor is every change made based on a desire to change something tactically.
Anderson has already become one of Forest’s most important players. He has thrived whether he has played as an orthodox central midfielder, as a left-sided option within Forest’s preferred 4-2-3-1 formation or, more recently, as a No10 when Morgan Gibbs-White has been suspended and injured. Forest sources — speaking on the condition of anonymity to protect their positions — believe that, like Gibbs-White, Anderson’s performances will soon earn him England recognition.
But Anderson has also been substituted in every single Premier League game he has played this season. That change has regularly come around the hour mark and it is not normally a reflection on how he has played but of his work rate. Forest are keen to ensure he avoids any fatigue-related injuries.
“When we decide not to start with players, we still want them to know they can have an impact,” said Nuno. “We have players who are explosive and have so much talent. It is about using them in the right moment.”
Graphic by: Mark Carey
(Top photo: MI News/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
