Defender Joe Worrall admits he wants Nottingham Forest’s arch-rivals Derby County to stay up this season - to preserve the East Midlands derby.
The Rams are in a desperate bid to avoid the drop in the final weeks of the campaign, currently sitting just outside of the Championship relegation zone with two matches left.
Wayne Rooney’s side have a four-point cushion over Rotherham United and Sheffield Wednesday, although the former still have a game in hand.
The Reds will have a part to play in determining their bitter enemies’ fate, however, as they travel to face the Owls this weekend.
Some supporters have wryly suggested this would be one game they wouldn’t mind losing. But boyhood Forest fan Worrall is having none of it.
“I would be massively disappointed if there was no East Midlands derby next season,” said the Nigel Doughty Academy product.
“It would be fantastic if they do go down, in one sense. But I also want to play against Derby, I want to score against Derby, I want to beat Derby.
“If you are asking me if I want them to go down, no I do not.”
He added: “I want to win the game.
“The league looks after itself.
“I am sure when they (Derby) were looking at us, when we beat Ipswich to stay up on the final day (in 2017) — they will have wanted the result to go the other way.
“We all support different football clubs.
“Whoever stays up, they are going to have to do it on merit, because we sure did that season, against Ipswich.
“The manager and players won’t be in holiday mode, even though we are mathematically safe - we will make sure of that.
“We will go to Hillsborough and try to win the game. There will be no funny stuff. It’s literally, go and win the game.”
