As a miserable season comes to a close, striker Glenn Murray is convinced next year could be an “exciting” one for Nottingham Forest.
The Reds went into 2020/21 with the aim of another promotion push, after agonisingly missing out on the play-offs almost 12 months ago.
It has not panned out like that, however, with much of the campaign spent trying to stay out of the relegation zone.
They secured Championship safety with two games to spare, but now the focus has shifted to a summer transformation, ready for a fresh assault on the top six.
Boss Chris Hughton knows what it takes to get out of the division, with two promotions on his managerial CV - one of those with Brighton and Hove Albion, where he worked alongside Murray.
And the front man is convinced the manager can work his magic again.
“When I joined the club, it wasn’t looking too good,” Murray told
“It was a question of not going down and making sure we stayed in the Championship. I think we’ve done that comfortably.
“As a club and as a squad, we’re growing. I think it could be quite an exciting season next season.”
Whether Murray will be part of that remains to be seen.
He signed a short-term deal with Forest in January, having spent the first half of the campaign on loan at Watford.
“I spent the first six months of the season on loan at Watford from Brighton, and it didn’t really work out very well,” he added
“I just wanted the opportunity to play some games and some football at this age.
“Thankfully, Chris Hughton gave me that opportunity.”
