Goalscorer Ryan Yates says Nottingham Forest are looking up, rather than over their shoulder, in the Championship promotion race.
The midfielder insists a push for the top two cannot be ruled out in the remaining seven games after the Reds moved up to fourth.
Yates’ goal in Sunday’s 3-1 victory over Huddersfield Town helped Forest climb the table and put some distance between themselves and the play-off-chasing pack.
There is now a seven-point gap between themselves and seventh-placed Preston North End - but also the same difference between Sabri Lamouchi’s men and West Bromwich Albion, in second.
“To be fair, we’re not really looking at who’s behind us, we’re more looking ahead,” Yates said, as he looked forward to Wednesday night’s home game against Bristol City.
“We want to push the ones who are ahead of us.
“The games come thick and fast now. We’ve got to focus and recover right.
“This result doesn’t really mean anything unless we back it up against Bristol.”
The weekend’s triumph ended a three-match winless run for the Reds, stretching back before the season’s suspension.
They had come close to getting maximum points in their first game back, only for a late equaliser to leave them with a 1-1 draw from their trip to Sheffield Wednesday.
Yates, though, made sure they clinched the result at an empty City Ground, coming off the bench at half-time to claim his team’s third goal.
“It was a nice moment,” the Nigel Doughty Academy product told the BBC.
“After having such a long break, and the disappointment of conceding the late goal last week, the most important thing was to get the win.
“I am delighted for the lads and we have got to back it up now against Bristol.
“The gaffer just said to focus on the performance. He wanted us to solely focus on the performance.
“He said, if the performance was right then we would win the game, and we did. That was really our main aim.
“The lads have come back in really good shape.
“But it’s only been two games. We need to take maximum points again at home on Wednesday.”
Yates had been in the starting XI the previous week, at Hillsborough, but found himself initially among the substitutes against the Terriers.
A tactical tweak at half-time from the head coach, however, saw him enter the fray - and he went on to make an impact.
“Whether I am starting or coming off the bench I just need to do my job to help the team as much as possible,” said Yates.
“Of course I was disappointed not to start, but I can’t be upset or anything as I came on at half-time and I need to be there for the team.”
