Samba Sow returned to the Nottingham Forest matchday squad for the first time since February - but the midfielder had to settle for a place on the bench against Bristol City.
Head coach Sabri Lamouchi made one change to the XI which had toppled Huddersfield Town 3-1 at the weekend, with Ryan Yates coming back into the starting line-up.
The Nigel Doughty Academy product came in at the expense of Brennan Johnson, who dropped out of the matchday squad.
With Yates back in the engine room, it meant a more advanced role for Tiago Silva as the Reds went in search of back-to-back wins at the City Ground.
In their third game back since the Championship’s restart, it was the established back five of Brice Samba in goal and a defence of Matty Cash, Tobias Figueiredo, Joe Worrall, and Yuri Ribeiro for Forest.
Ben Watson kept his place in midfield in the behind-closed-doors clash, after returning from an ankle problem last time out, partnering Yates.
Silva joined Joe Lolley and Sammy Ameobi in an attacking three to support lone striker Lewis Grabban, who had bagged a brace against Huddersfield.
Sow had been sidelined since before the season’s resumption with a knee injury, with Lamouchi saying it had been his “choice” to leave him out on Sunday.
Jordan Smith, Nuno Da Costa, Joao Carvalho, John Bostock, Carl Jenkinson, Michael Dawson, Tyler Walker and Alex Mighten joined him on the bench.
Forest: Samba, Cash, Worrall, Figueiredo, Ribeiro, Watson (c), Yates, Lolley, Silva, Ameobi, Grabban. Subs: Smith, Da Costa, Carvalho, Bostock, Jenkinson, Dawson, Sow, Walker, Mighten.
Bristol City: Maenpaa, Vyner, Williams, Baker, Dasilva, Weimann, Nagy, Smith (c), O’Dowda, Afobe, Wells. Subs: Bentley, Diedhiou, Watkins, Paterson, Kalas, Rowe, Benkovic, Massengo, Palmer.
