Nottingham Forest manager Oliver Glasner has described his side's current position as harsh while insisting he will not adopt a complaining stance, BBC reports. Forest travel to Ipswich Town on Friday sitting in the Premier League relegation zone after losing their past three matches. The club appointed Glasner in the summer following his departure from Crystal Palace, and the early results have not matched expectations.
Why it matters
Forest's poor start has placed immediate scrutiny on a manager hired to push the club forward. According to BBC, Glasner believes his team have been close to better outcomes, pointing to wasted chances in the defeat at Palace and a narrow loss to champions Arsenal last Sunday. Internally, BBC reports there is confidence that the side remain on the right path under Glasner, whose methods and personality have impressed those around him.
Glasner arrived with a strong record, having won the FA Cup, Community Shield and Conference League during his time at Palace. BBC notes he is eager to repeat that success and has said owner Evangelos Marinakis is the only person he has encountered with greater ambition than himself. The 52-year-old has also been candid about his limitations, stating he is not a magician, and has already discussed previous slow starts with Marinakis.
A track record of slow beginnings
Glasner's early struggles are not without precedent. BBC reports he won only one of his first six matches at Palace after taking over from Roy Hodgson in February 2024, and then went winless in his first eight games of the 2024-25 campaign. That season ended with Palace defeating Manchester City in the FA Cup final, claiming the club's first major trophy in 119 years.
At Forest, BBC reports Glasner has stressed the importance of a strategy and consistency. The club has cycled through managers recently: Ange Postecoglou lasted 39 days after six defeats and no wins in eight games, Sean Dyche remained for just over 100 days, and Vitor Pereira was dismissed in June, two minutes before a termination clause expired, despite reaching the Europa League semi-finals and securing top-flight survival.
A preferred starting line-up is beginning to emerge under Glasner. BBC reports Neco Williams, Matz Sels, Dan Ndoye, Murillo and James McAtee have started every league game, while Morgan Gibbs-White would have done the same on Sunday but for a muscle injury. Club captain Ryan Yates has yet to play a minute, Ibrahim Sangare has made just one start despite signing a new three-year contract in the summer, Callum Hudson-Odoi has seen limited playing time, and Ola Aina has lost his place to new wing-back Daniel Munoz.
Scoring problems at the City Ground
Forest's attacking numbers underline their difficulties. BBC reports the side have scored five league goals this season and hold a -6.20 expected goals figure, the worst in the division. They rank third in the Premier League for shots with 120, behind only Manchester United and Brighton, but just 25 have been on target. Against Arsenal, Forest managed 14 attempts with only two on target, and Rory Delap's close-range miss at Palace, saved by Walter Benitez, has come to symbolise the team's lack of a finishing touch.
The conversion rate stands at 4.17%, the lowest in the league after Spurs moved to 6.06% following their Monday win over Coventry. BBC reports Forest have now gone eight hours and 26 minutes without scoring at home, and have won just two of 17 home league games since November. Four of their eight home league goals in 2026 came in a single match against a weak Burnley side in April. Those struggles were partly obscured by Europa League victories over Ferencvaros, Porto and Aston Villa.
Glasner addressed the finishing issue after the Arsenal defeat. BBC quotes him saying that every Premier League team has the quality to score, but that against the champions a side gets only two, three or four chances rather than the seven, eight or nine Forest had at Palace, and that failing to take them leaves a team open to losing. Forest spent £50m on striker Delap in the summer, and BBC reports Glasner praised him after the Arsenal game, where Ezri Konsa also blocked his injury-time effort.
Defender Murillo backed the manager's approach after the Arsenal loss. BBC quotes him saying the squad have a good manager and are still absorbing his ideas, noting the system changed completely this season. He added that the team are improving and believe they are close to their best, and that confidence is building within an experienced group.
Forest's next opportunity comes at Ipswich on Friday, with the trip offering a chance to halt the slide and ease the pressure building around the club.
