“Players at the top”- Steve Cooper heats up competition for Ola Aina, Taiwo Awoniyi, others

After securing the services of Gonzalo Montiel, Ola Aina and Antony Elanga, Steve Cooper is elated at the strength in depth Nottingham possesses.

Nottingham Forest, Steve Cooper, has expressed delight at the competition for starting spots at the club, Soccernet.ng reports.

Steve Cooper’s Nottingham have recorded two wins in four games, recording massive wins over Chelsea and Sheffield United. The Reds also put in impressive performances in their losses away to Arsenal and Manchester United.

Cooper secured the services of Chris Wood from Newcastle on a year deal, and Divock Origi on loan from A.C. Milan to compete with Nigerian Taiwo Awoniyi for the starting position up front.

The departures of Dennis Emmanuel and Andre Ayew opened up space for the welcome of Antony Elanga from Manchester United and Callum Hudson-Odoi from Chelsea.

They shored up the midfield with the signature of Nicolas Dominguez and in defence, World Cup winner – Goncalo Montiel, and Super Eagles versatile defender – Ola Aina. The departure of three-time UEFA Champions League winner, Keylor Navas welcomed Matt Turner from Arsenal to make the number one goalkeeping spot his own.

Speaking ahead of Nottingham Forest’s game against Burnley tonight, Steve Cooper expressed his delight with his squad depth and emphasized how the culture keeps the players on their toes, so they can perform optimally.

“It’s a competitive group now, there’s strength in depth and real competition for places which is what we want from goalkeeper to the players at the top of the pitch,” Cooper told Nottingham’s Official website.

The forty-three-year-old tactician wants the competitive spirit at the club to continue. He said;

“That’s the sort of culture you want, where players have to work hard to be in the next team.”

Cooper’s side take on Burnley later tonight as they look to collect all three points to rise up the Premier League table.

Adefolahan Guerreiro

Adefolahan is a multilingual journalist and writer at Soccernet Nigeria. With a track record of involvement in College sports, Adefolahan is focused on crafting engaging football content and utilising his language skills and extensive sports knowledge to enhance content accessibility for a global audience. He has interviewed Nigerian stars like Finidi George, Junior Lokosa, and Abraham Onahi Ogbu.

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