Chris Wood (Nottingham Forest | England)

Red Flags for Forest. Two competitive home games now. 0 goals and 2 loses to a newly promoted club.

Glasner normally starts of slow. more red flags for wood given he's done nothing in two games and they want Delap.

I think I have just developed a fear that Chris Wood will never score a PL goal again 

To be honest, all the intrigue re Wood now focuses on if he can reach 100. He only needs 8 right? 

If (and it's definitely an "if") Delap tears it up and Wood is reduced to a few minutes here and there, then maybe he makes a January move to a team in a relgation scrap that needs a proven EPL scorer. 8 feels possible.

Maybe I'm deluded, I just really hope he gets to 100... 

It’s so odd. 

10 goals in a season is a reasonable season for a PL striker. 

If he gets on a run, he gets 8 in a month, month and a half. 

But equally he could go this season not even living on scraps and getting very little.

That Delap signing is a club record. It seems unlikely Wood is keeping him out. And Jesus has been quietly reliable imo. Wood needs to be your 9 and have everything built around him. He’s not able to play wide, but perhaps he can play a front two. And Glasner likes a rampaging 9, as well as someone good in the box. Mateta. 

Wood has had injury problems and is heavily associated with a previous coach and not with the current coach or DoF. 

But once he gets going he’s a clinical striker at Premier League level. 

Hard to say. He could get 15, he could get 1. Glasner certainly doesn’t trust him yet.

You feel he brings something to the team in experience and leadership, but…

Niche Cache.

That’s a pesky exit (League Cup loss to Leeds) because those EFL Cup ties could have kept The Woodsman busy if Glasner doesn’t think he’s match-fit enough to start Prem games yet. Especially now that they’ve added another striker to the pool in Chelsea forward Liam Delap. Big money signing despite a rubbish season with the Blues, Forest banking on being able to get him back to his immense promise for Ipswich Town before that – and for good reason since this club has been very successful with reclamation projects in recent years (Callum Hudson-Odoi, Ola Aina, Anthony Elanga, etc.).

In summary, the Woodsman is heading into the final twelve months of his contract. He’s turning 35 in December and suffered an extended injury absence within the past year. New manager. Limited preseason. Now he’s competing with both Igor Jesus and Liam Delap for minutes in is specialist position.

But it could have been a lot worse. After his confidence-denting Chelsea spell, Liam Delap might not be seen as an immediate first eleven addition and more of a mid-to-long term replacement. He’s a similar style of striker to Woodsy in that he relies on his strength and physicality, granted with an added dribbling threat, so from his perspective this is awesome because he’s going to get to learn the craft from The Woodsman himself.

It’s only natural that NFFC would be trying to build beyond Wood, all things considered. He can’t take his Premier League status for granted beyond this year – his job is to compete for starts, score some goals, and be a worthy teammate. Then whatever happens beyond that, happens. Delap has had a lot of injuries in recent times, while Igor Jesus has tended to look most effective when used as a secondary striker, therefore Wood will should still have some room to do what he does best, even if it’s not an every week thing. Pity he couldn’t emphasis his case with a goal from those three big chances.

Chris Wood: “We’re a very ambitious club and that shows it by what we’re spending on players like [Delap]. Good players. It’ll be fantastic to get Liam through the door. Hopefully that all gets signed and sealed. And it’s one of those, it’ll be great for our team. Healthy competition. We’ll all be better players for it.”

Out of favour. 

Should he be looking for a transfer? Presumably the girls are settled in Nottingham. And have no interest in moving to Hull or any such city! 

Ummmm...

Woodsman an unused sub in a 2-2 Anfield draw.
Jesus starts and Delap on at 66 mins, with Forest trailing 2-1.

Even when Jesus came off in the 92nd min, it was Dominguez as his replacement.

Forest host Spurs.

Wood on, as grievances ring out around the City ground. 

Ends with 0-0.

Williams gets kicked in the head on the line and apparently shelled a goal in the process. 

How many players have Spurs got? Blimey. A lot of the-next-great names.

Wood on at 74 mins for Delap.

Brief highlights with Delap playing Gibbs-White in nicely on a couple of occassions.

Villa at Villa next.