Joining a club with an ambition which matches his own was a key factor in Tyler Blackett’s move to Nottingham Forest.
And the summer signing has no doubts the Reds can quickly put last season’s heartache behind them - after all, he knows a little bit about how Sabri Lamouchi’s squad will have been feeling.
Blackett made it to the Championship play-off final with former club Reading in 2017, only to fall at the final hurdle as Huddersfield Town triumphed on penalties at Wembley.
Forest, too, suffered a late collapse last term as they agonisingly missed out on a top six finish.
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Since then, though, six new signings have been brought in - including Blackett - to freshen up the squad, with the defender certain there is no shortage of motivation to put things right.
“I can definitely identify with how they would be feeling,” the 26-year-old told NottinghamshireLive.
“It’s a heartbreaking feeling when you do so well all season, then you get to the end - be it just before the play-offs or the play-off final - and you don’t quite achieve it.
“As much as it’s saddening, it’s frustrating as well because you’ve done so much work. To see it not come to anything can be a big blow.
“For me, I remember at the time it was just about not reflecting on it too much - it’s come to nothing really, so you can’t dwell on it too much.
“You have to then know what you need to do the next year and make strides to get there again.
“I think having so many new signings can work both ways - for us players who weren’t involved in it last season, it can give the squad a fresh boost.
“And for the players who were involved, it can be the motivation they need to push on.
“It can work on both sides.”
Reaching the Premier League remains the goal for the Reds.
They were knocked out of the Carabao Cup on Saturday, in their opening game of the campaign, but will head to QPR this weekend looking to get off to a solid start in the league.
Blackett has had a taste of top-flight football from his time at Manchester United, as well as having experienced the pressure cooker of representing Celtic.
And he is well versed on what to expect at the City Ground.
“I would say both times, at the start with those clubs, mentally it was a bit difficult,” he said.
“But as you get older, you realise that you can’t really look at that side. You realise you have to focus on yourself and know what you have to do.
“When you’re playing for a big club, you have that pressure. It motivates you to do even better.
“You’re really pushed to excel and to bring the best out of yourself.
“Sometimes, when you’re playing in a team with not so much pressure, you can fall into a gap where you don’t really have to do too much.
“But here, the pressure is going to help us in the end.
“When I decided that I would move from Reading, I didn’t want to be going to a club which doesn’t have the same ambitions as myself, in terms of achieving more and ultimately getting to the Premier League.
“You want to be at a place where everyone is working and pulling in the right direction.
“There’s always options, but the club has to match up with myself personally as well.
“That was the biggest thing for me coming here - the management, the board, the team itself and the whole club, it’s the right fit.
“The manager and the board had shown an interest for quite a while.
“And to actually speak to the manager over the phone, it makes a difference. It’s a bit more personal when you’re actually speaking on a one-to-one level - he can understand you as a player and he sees the potential in you. It makes a difference.”
