Club’s third manager of the season in need of lift-off after negative start in the league
Sean Dyche’s return to Premier League management offered a reminder of the challenge ahead, as Nottingham Forest fell 2-0 to in-form Bournemouth on Sunday.
Dyche was appointed last week after the dismissal of Ange Postecoglou, and he endured an outcome that is now familiar to Forest fans this season at the Vitality Stadium.
Dyche had had an excellent opening game in midweek with the 2-0 win over Porto in the Conference League, but first-half goals from Marcus Tarvenier and Eli Junior Kroupi condemned the new coach to a setback that underlined how much work remains for him.
“The biggest disappointment was the drop-off physically,” Dyche said afterwards. “You saw a very high pressing team… and we never got to grips with that.
“We’ve crammed in weeks of what you’d normally do into five days, so you know, we have asked a lot, but the first half was a long way short from where we want to be physically.”
Forest play an in-form Manchester United next week where getting a result will also be difficult. Dyche said that the squad needed improvement in terms of fitness and structure.
“It’s tough, because we’ve only got so many working days,” Dyche said. “We’ve got so many games, but we’ve got to find it. We will find a way of getting that, that’s for sure.”
