Head coach Sabri Lamouchi thanked the City Ground crowd for their part in helping Nottingham Forest clinch a convincing 3-0 victory over arch-rivals Derby County.
And the Frenchman hopes the Reds fans will turn out in force again on Saturday, as his team look to end the first month of the season in positive style, against Preston North End.
Albert Adomah, Joe Lolley and Joao Carvalho - on his comeback from injury - sealed a place in the next round of the Carabao Cup for Forest, with Lamouchi revelling in his first East Midlands derby.
“My first Brian Clough Trophy,” he grinned.
“But it wasn’t only about the derby, it was about the atmosphere. Our fans were just fantastic.
“I said to the players, ‘you are lucky, we are all lucky, to enjoy this night and this game’.
“I have to say congratulations to the players.
“We have started the week in a good way, and we need to finish the week in a good way, too. It won’t be easy, but we have to focus on Saturday too.
“We have put in a lot of effort and sacrifice. Session after session, game after game, week after week, the players have improved and the performances are getting better and better.
“But all games are different. Saturday will be a different story, a tough game against a very tough team.
“But I hope the City Ground will be full, with the same atmosphere. The fans can help and give us a lot of positive energy, like they did against Derby.”
It is now six games unbeaten for the Reds in all competitions, as they have built some momentum heading into the international break.
Lamouchi made eight changes from the team which triumphed at Fulham last weekend, but there was no disruption to the performance as Forest were dominant against their bitter rivals.
“We did what we decided to do,” said Lamouchi. “Derbies are always difficult games to play.
“The first 10 minutes were not perfect, but after that we controlled the game.
“We didn’t give them anything, which is very positive, because we were very focused.
“It was a very good performance and a very good result.
“Thank you to the fans because they were really fantastic. And thank you to the players, because I enjoyed it.
“It was very good for many, many reasons.
“But I said to the players at the start, we have started the week in the right way, but we can’t miss the chance to finish the week in the same way.
“But we must be ready. Preston is a different team, with a lot of quality. They play very well. We must be ready for that game.”
