Former Nottingham Forest midfielder Steve Hodge reckons his old side have the Championship's top goalkeeper on their books.
Brice Samba kept his 12th clean sheet of the season on Tuesday night when the Reds recorded a vital 1-0 win at Cardiff City to keep their automatic promotion hopes alive.
Samba has established himself as a fan favourite at the City Ground, his infectious personality both on the pitch and on social media endearing him to fans.
His good form has certainly helped, too, with the summer signing from Caen hitting the ground running as part of Sabri Lamouchi's revolution on the banks of the River Trent.
The Reds have one of the more meaner defences in the League, with only Leeds United in second place and Brentford in fifth conceding less than Forest's 37 goals this season.
And Hodge reckons Samba is among the best in his position in the second tier.
“I think we’ve got the best keeper in the league,” he told BBC Radio Nottingham.
“He enjoyed it (against Cardiff City) because there was lots of balls into the box and he knew he could come and punch a few and knock people out of the way.
“He knew he’d be on the scene and on the cameras a lot. I think he likes being on the cameras – not in a flashy way but he’s just very good at what he does.
"He likes to be in control of his penalty area and the players in front of him. That’s what I like about him.
“It’s the calmness when he catches the ball.
“He’s like ‘it’s okay guys, we can relax now – I’ve got the ball and we can all relax’.”
