Nottingham Forest will go in search of their first Good Friday win since 2011 when they visit Sheffield United's Bramall Lane tomorrow, hoping to end a string of poor performances and results and lift some of the frustration.
The Reds don’t have a good record on the holy Easter day, losing 10 of their last 13 outings, with just three wins – and they’ve lost the last three in succession against Millwall (2-0) and Blackburn (0-1).
Martin O’Neill’s Reds have also lost their last three Championship games, with supporter unrest growing under the former Celtic and Aston Villa boss after their promotion challenge fell away in dramatic fashion.
Forest’s last win on Good Friday came eight years ago at the City Ground, when Billy Davies’ men were 3-2 winners over Leicester City, with Marcus Tudgay, Robert Earnshaw and Paul McKenna seeing off Sven-Goran Eriksson’s Foxes, with the Reds going on to earn a place in the play-offs before losing to Swansea.
Not only will Forest take their poor away form to the Steel City, they’ll also be going to Bramall Lane knowing they’ve yet to win at the home of their rivals since a 2-1 victory in 2004 – a run of six games, winning two and drawing four.
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Contrast the Blades’ Good Friday record with that of Forest, United have registered three points in six of their last seven games on the religious holiday.
Not since January 2017, have Forest lost four Championship matches in a row – and they all came under Frenchman Philippe Montanier, who was dismissed by Fawaz Al Hasawi after a seventh game without a win when they drew 0-0 at Birmingham City later that month.
The Reds did win the reverse fixture at the City Ground in early November by a Lewis Grabban goal to nil, their second Trentside victory over the Blades in a row.
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Last season’s Bramall Lane tussle ended in a goalless draw.
