The Championship is one of the most competitive divisions of football in Europe – but Nottingham Forest still have a chance to achieve something within it, between now and May.
That is the message from Tendayi Darikwa, who admits his frustration that the Reds are not in a better position – but says they must focus on the fact they do still have a chance left to do something about that.
With seven games left to play, Martin O’Neill’s side are still among the clutch of teams eyeing the top six with a sense of hope and determination.
And Darikwa says the Reds must believe they can still secure a positive finale to the campaign – even amid a fiercely contested battle.
“It is up there with the top leagues in Europe, in terms of how competitive it is,” said Darikwa.
“It is one of the few leagues where the majority of teams will feel like they have a chance of promotion or even of winning the league.
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“It is a competitive league and I wish we were higher in the table – but we still have a chance and we have to take that belief into these games.”
While many will be analysing the fixtures all the teams involved in the promotion fray still have left to play, Darikwa says he has not tried to predict what the future holds.
Instead, he is merely focused on doing his best to help Forest secure another positive result – and a first away win since November – when they head to Rotherham United this weekend.
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“I haven’t looked past the next game. The next game is always the most important one,” he said.
“We have been doing okay at home; the record at the City Ground has not been too bad at all.
“It is on the road where we have been dropping points and hopefully we can get back-to-back wins when we go to Rotherham.”
