After a difficult working relationship at Wolves, Nuno Espirito Santo wants captain Morgan Gibbs-White to use his “special abilities” to drag Nottingham Forest away from danger.
The club captain, Gibbs-White, has been retained by the new Nottingham Forest boss.
Nuno Espirito Santo, the Portuguese coach who is trying to save Nottingham Forest from relegation, says he wants to see more of Morgan Gibbs-White’s “special abilities.”
When the Forest midfielder was a teenager, he played for Nuno at Wolves, and their working relationship was not always cordial.
But now Nuno believes Gibbs-White, 23, has matured into the player he always felt he would become after being part of Steve Cooper’s U-17 England World Cup winning squad in 2017.
The new Forest head coach has taken charge of two games since Cooper was sacked last week.
Nuno’s side lost at home to Bournemouth before securing an impressive win at Newcastle on Boxing Day – with Chris Wood scoring a hat-trick.
Wood may have captured the headlines, but Nuno was impressed with Gibbs-White, and kept him on as captain.
‘Morgan had an amazing game, not just at Newcastle, but also against Bournemouth, when he was fantastic,’ said Nuno.
‘He started in a more advanced position and then he dropped into midfield, but he delivered and he showed fight.
‘Morgan has the qualities, talent and special abilities within the game to help the team.
‘What I expect from Morgan, is to provide the fighting spirit and quality, the key passes that can help us find spaces for his teammates.
‘He does all of those things.
‘Also, he was captain of the team which is a big responsibility for such a young boy, he did well.’
Forest host Manchester United on Saturday evening and will be without record £30million signing Ibrahim Sangare who is suspended.
Nuno says he has tried to deliver a message to the squad ahead of their last Premier League game for three weeks ahead of a staggered winter break.
‘We have to improve, keep on going. We are getting to know each other, but it’s still early days, as training sessions go by, we are able to know more about what individuals can give us and their best positions,’ he said.
‘Ibrahim had a good game at Newcastle, after all the illness he’d been through, he knew couldn’t perform for 90 minutes – he wanted to give as much as he could. He has a lot to improve, especially on the fitness side of the game.’
