The "brutal honesty" of Martin O’Neill and Roy Keane has helped Nottingham Forest players improve, says Ben Osborn.
The midfielder says the duo have a knack of delivering clear instructions, to ensure everyone knows what their role is out on the pitch.
Osborn, 24, says O’Neill and Keane have earned the respect of the Reds squad with their straight-talking approach.
And he hopes it will stand them in good stead as they head into the final weeks of the Championship season, starting with the visit of Swansea to the City Ground this weekend.
“They have been good. They are brutally honest, as you might expect. Their man management is brilliant,” said Osborn.
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“The gaffer has been in the game for a long time and you have huge respect for both of them and what they have achieved.
“You listen to them and they tell you things in a black and white way. It helps the players because, when you go out on the pitch and you know exactly what they want you to do, it makes things a lot easier.”
Forest’s season so far has been undermined by inconsistency – but there is still an opportunity there for them to challenge for the top six, if they can put together a string of positive results now.
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“We are all in the same boat together. It has been a season of ups and downs and they might not have expected to have been here,” said Osborn.
“But we still have a few games to try to make something of this season and we are pulling together to try to make that happen.”
