Jamie can help Mackie Forest fly

The signings of Jamie Mackie and Djamel Abdoun have got a lot of Forest fans excited. They both sound like highly promising additions to the squad, and will give Forest plenty of attacking options out on the wings.

Although he can play as a striker, I think Mackie will probably be used a lot out on the wing, where he has been very effective for QPR, scoring 19 goals in 82 appearances for the Hoops during his three-year stay at Loftus Road. He had a similar scoring ratio at Exeter City and Plymouth, and his form earned him a call-up for Scotland, for whom he has made nine appearances so far, scoring two goals.

We apparently paid QPR a fee of around £1 million after the player expressed a desire to leave Rangers. Judging by the fans' reaction, it seems like it's very much a case of their loss and our gain!

I'm less sure about the arrival of Abdoun from Olympiacos, as I don't really know anything about Greek football and don't know what the standard of their League is compared with the Championship, but I've been told that Abdoun terrorised Arsenal in the Champions League, so he must be quite good! I'm not sure if he will be a key figure in the team, or whether he will be kept in the shadows, but he could turn out to be a very exciting player, so we will have to see.

There's still a bit of work to do, but Forest are getting closer and closer to having a team that is capable of challenging for the automatic promotion spots. Their pre-season form has been a bit stuttering in terms of performances, but they didn't lose a single game, albeit against not very glamorous opposition. They had four victories out of seven, so at least they are in the winning habit. There's every reason to be feeling confident of victory next Saturday when the season finally gets underway at the City Ground against Huddersfield. With the promise of further additions still to come, the starting line-up will look vastly different to the one that featured against Leicester City three months ago.

Now Hobbs is here, Forest should give up their chase for Wes

Forest should be much stronger in defence this season now that the highly rated centre-back Jack Hobbs has arrived from Hull on a season-long loan deal.

If things work out for Hobbs, he is committed to a further two years providing Forest decide to keep him. That is a very sensible way to go about their business as Hobbs has recently returned from a long-term cruciate knee ligament injury, and he could suffer from further problems.

Leicester City fans thought that the signing of Hobbs would cool Forest's interest in Wes Morgan, but according to the media, Billy Davies is still hopeful of bringing Morgan back to the City Ground and will submit a fourth bid of around £2 million, if rumours are to be believed.

Personally, I think it's stupid to spend that kind of money on a centre-back in the last year of his contract. Morgan is no John Terry after all. He often made me feel quite nervous when he was in defence. He was part of a back four that played a part in Forest's worse ever spell in their history, after all.

I think with Hobbs here, that should be enough because Greg Halford proved himself to be very capable in central-defence last season, and he and Hobbs could strike up an excellent understanding. They are both very tall and good in the air, so I think Forest should concentrate their resources elsewhere now, perhaps for a midfield general or another striker. We're not too far off from having a very good team that could challenge for automatic promotion.

At last we will get some use out of Greening!

The news that Jonathan Greening has been converted into a player-coach for the under-21s is a positive step both for his career and Forest's future.

There's no doubt that Greening at the age of 34 has bags of experience and is a good footballer, but for some reason his career has never really taken off at Forest, since joining two years ago following Steve McClaren's arrival at the City Ground.

I've been rather critical of Greening, wondering why he was hanging around at the Club earning a big wage, and rarely getting near the first team. It did seem likely that he would be leaving when he was loaned out to Barnsley, but Billy Davies obviously took a shine to him when he returned and sees Greening as a good influence on the dressing room. He forced himself back into the reckoning on match days, often being named among the substitutes.

Greening has a colourful personality and seems to be very popular with the players if Twitter is anything to go by. If the under-21s enjoy working with him, it will help create a good atmosphere, which will pervade right throughout the Club.

What does De Vries signing mean for Darlow?

The signing of an experienced goalkeeper with promotion experience should never be sniffed at, but many Forest fans can't help but feel a bit sorry for Karl Darlow, who must have felt that his first team future at Forest was assured following his impressive performances in the second half of last season.

Of course, there's nothing wrong with having a bit of healthy competition, but I'm not sure that Dorus De Vries would have joined Forest just to sit on the bench and play second fiddle to Darlow. At the age of 32, De Vries needs to be playing first team football regularly, having seen his career stagnate at Wolves, despite being a prominent figure in Swansea's successful promotion campaign two years ago.

I must admit that at first I was really worried when Lee Camp left, and then Darlow was thrown straight into the team. But his performances defied my expectations, and it was soon a question of 'Camp who?'

Our defence continued to leak goals, but that wasn't down to Darlow, but the men in front of him. If Forest can sort their back four out, Darlow could form part of a very solid unit. I just hope that he is given a chance to prove his worth because if he is reduced to being a substitute again I can see him wanting to go out on loan again in search of first team football that he deserves.

McGugan was worth his weight in goals

I am quite surprised that Lewis McGugan has ended up signing for Watford on a free transfer. I thought he was holding out for a Premiership club, but he has in my opinion taken a bit of a backwards step in joining a less glamorous club than Forest.

It will be a shock to the system to see one of our home-grown players wearing the colours of another team, but I suppose it was inevitable that he was not going to sign a new contract as he had become disillusioned being a peripheral member of the squad last season, even if he was handed a new lease of life when Billy Davies returned as manager.

Following Wes Morgan's departure to Leicester last year, McGugan became Forest's longest-serving player, having made his debut in 2006 as an 18-year-old. During his seven-year spell at the City Ground, he scored an impressive 40 goals in just over 200 appearances, a great many of them from long-range. In fact he won 'Goal of the Season' two seasons in succession, and played an integral role in Forest's promotion back to the Championship in 2008.

Under Davies, McGugan was mostly used as a 'super sub', coming off the bench to score some significant goals. His ability from set-pieces was a cause of concern for many opposition defences, and even though he struggled to break into the starting line-up due to his lack of stamina and work ethic, his tendency to pull a rabbit out of the hat out of the blue made him a vital player to have around.

After being frozen out completely under Sean O'Driscoll and Alex McLeish, McGugan made a return to the first team spotlight last season and scored in six successive games, which helped Forest to keep their play-off chances alive on the last day. Without McGugan's input, and their lack of firepower upfront, the Reds would never have come close to finishing in the top six. In fact we may have ended up fighting relegation instead.

Forest will no longer be able to rely on some 'McGugan magic' to get them out of trouble, so they will have to work a lot harder now to score goals. That will probably be no bad thing, but I will really miss Lewis. Let's just hope he's having an off-day when we play Watford next season!

Unknown Paterson could go on to big things just like Keane

I can't pretend that I have ever heard of him, but the signing of Jamie Paterson sounds promising. Hopefully he will turn out to be the winger we have so desperately needed.

Last season he scored an impressive 13 goals from midfield for Walsall, a figure that none of our strikers managed to achieve! At just 21 years of age, he would appear to have a very bright future in the game, and looks capable of making the step up to the Championship.

Middlesbrough were also said to be interested in landing his services, but Forest beat them to it, handing him a two-year deal with the option of a further year. The fee is around the million mark, but has not yet been disclosed. Forest will be hoping that in years to come they will be able to recoup their investment and make a tidy profit.

You never know, we may have just signed a future England winger! After all, whoever had heard of Roy Keane?

Fans would be lost without live radio coverage

One of the worst rumours I have heard this summer is that Radio Nottingham might lose the rights to broadcast commentary of Forest matches this season.

The station's contract has yet to be renewed, and at the time of writing Forest have not contacted them to discuss a new deal. This means that the only way people will be able to listen to Forest next season is if they pay for a subscription to Forest Player.

The only way I can access Radio Nottingham when I am at home is on the internet as I live in Bedford, but when I travel to games, I take a portable radio with me and tune in for the pre-match and post match analysis. I am always eager to find out what the team news is at 2pm, too, and when incidents happen during the game it's very handy to have my radio with me to get information. Now I might be forced into buying a smartphone just so I can access Twitter on matchdays, but why should I take out an expensive contract and pay for a service I have always had for free?

There has been speculation that the Al-Hasawis might consider selling rights to Al-jazeera, a TV station which is currently available on the Freeview platform. That's fine and dandy, but what about all those people who are at the match and want to listen to it there? Remember that momentous last day against Yeovil in 2008 when we were promoted, and everybody had their headphones on, anxiously listening out for the other results involving Doncaster and Carlisle? And Colin Fray's excited voice as he read out the scores? And how as soon as he closed his mouth, the City Ground crowd emitted a collective roar of ecstasy? That was all down to Radio Nottingham. If Forest are considering ending their association with them, it will be a crazy decision which will alienate many supporters.

I've heard that the reason why Forest are apparently reluctant to renew their deal is that Billy Davies has a problem with them. Davies refused to do post-match interviews with them last season, so he obviously has some kind of issue. But if he is the reason why we lose the coverage, I will start to feel resentment towards him, and I really don't want to.

If the match coverage is restricted to Forest Player only, a service which frequently fails, and is sometimes a good two-three minutes behind real time, Forest fans are going to feel very short-changed. Radio coverage of matches has existed for as long as I can remember. I was thrilled when back in 1993 my dad realised he could pick up GEM AM on his car radio even down here in Bedford! Until then, I had to be content with watching the match on teletext and listening out for updates on Radio Five Live. Being able to listen to the whole match was a revelation, and it turned me into an even bigger fan as I felt closer to the Club than I had ever done before.

It was good timing that by the time GEM lost the rights, we acquired the internet and were able to listen to Century 106 via RealPlayer software. That was back in the days when we were relying on a dial-up modem, which frustratingly cut out, and I panicked that somebody might ring the phone in the meantime and stop us from listening to the match! Thank god, then for broadband, which came along in 2002. Ever since then, I've been happily listening to Radio Nottingham's coverage every season via Forest Player, and I see no reason why it should change.

If we end up having to listen to the match via Forest Player, it won't be nearly as good as the service Radio Nottingham provides. Colin Fray and Robin Chipperfield are brilliant at what they do. They are passionate and love their jobs. They will be gutted if they don't get to cover Forest any more. I dread to think what the service would be like on Forest Player if somebody in-house does it. If it's anything like the coverage of pre-season friendlies, god help us all.

If Forest do go down the internet-only route, what about all those much older Forest supporters who are not connected to the internet and who struggle with technology? Every matchday after the game, I hear old people call in to the phone-in saying that they listen to matches on the radio. They can't get to the City Ground any more because they are not in the best of health, but they tune in avidly every weekend to listen to their beloved Forest, who they have been following all of their lives since they were six or seven years old. What about them? Or do they not matter because they are not the Club's future?

With only little over a month until the new season, it's a bit worrying that nothing has yet been sorted out. Fawaz al-Hasawi seems like a very reasonable man, though, as he is eager to please the supporters and keep them onside. I pray that something can be sorted out for everybody's sake, because having no local radio coverage of Forest will be unthinkable.

Could Wes be on his way back to the City Ground?

The Sun newspaper reports this morning that Billy Davies is interested in bringing former Forest stalwart Wes Morgan back to the City Ground for £1.5 million.

Morgan of course spent a decade at Forest and was a mainstay in central defence for such a long time. He won Leicester City's Player of the Year award last season, and is their current club captain, so if Forest are able to prise him away from the King Power Stadium, it would be a real statement of intent.

I can definitely see Morgan wanting to return to Forest now that Davies has returned, and especially with Leicester now suffering from a bit of a play-off hangover. But the Foxes will be very reluctant to part with such an important player and will be demanding big money.

Morgan is currently at the peak of his career, and we only really have a chance of signing him if he is unsettled. He is a Nottingham man through and through, though, so it would not surprise me to see him wearing a Forest shirt again before he finishes his career!

That's full back well-covered. Now we must find a centre-back

Yesterday I said it was unlikely that Forest would try and bring back Gonzalo Jara Reyes following the signing of Eric Lichaj. But today we have learnt that the Chilean defender has now agreed to a one-year deal!

This seems to indicate that Lichaj will play at left back with Jara on the other side. It means we are now very well covered in both full back positions as Lichaj, Jara, and Greg Halford can all do a good job both at left and right back. And then we've got Chris Cohen and Dan Harding who can play on the left, too. Billy Davies won't know what's hit him with so many players at the Club who are comfortable playing in that position!

So now that right back is sufficiently covered, I can't see us trying to sign Sam Hutchinson again, even if Davies said he wasn't averse to the idea a few months ago. Perhaps he was just being diplomatic, but we can't afford to carry a player who is available for about five matches a season!

Now we must focus on signing a top quality centre-half. At the moment we are looking very weak in that department. Halford has a reputation as being a jack of all trades, and was moved about in defence all last season, playing in every position, but he looks most comfortable at centre-back and with his statuesque frame is ideally suited to playing in the middle. If we can find someone good to partner him, our back four will start to look much more impenetrable.

Once we do sign another central defender, Danny Collins will have to be content with a place on the bench at most. He's okay as back-up, but nothing more, and he's certainly not captain material, especially if he's not playing regularly!

There is also Jamaal Lascelles, who has been bigged up as one for the future, but he has yet to make much progress on the first team scene at Forest. He made it into the England-u20 world cup squad this summer, so maybe next season will be his year. He turns 20 in the autumn so he will be keen to get some first team action soon, whether that's at Forest, or perhaps elsewhere on loan.

Lichaj lands as Forest start to rebuild their back line

Following weeks of speculation, fullback Eric Lichaj has signed a two-year deal with Forest to become their second summer signing.

The 24-year-old's USA internatonal's best position is at right back, but he can also fill in on the other side when required. And he is also capable of playing in midfield. His versatility therefore has led to fans branding him the 'American version of Greg Halford'. And the similarities don't end there as like Halford, he also possesses a long throw in his armoury.

We have landed him on a free after he was released by Aston Villa, where he made 32 appearances in five years. He went out on loan to Leeds United in 2011, where he impressed to such an extent that Leeds fans were keen on the club signing him permanently this summer following his release by Villa. But Forest got in there first, and they hope that Lichaj will bring a bit of steal to the side.

Lichaj as it stands is now our first choice right back, as it now looks highly unlikely that Forest will be exploring the possibility of bringing back Gonzalo Jara Reyes to the Club following his loan spell last season as several Spanish clubs are said to be clamouring for his signature. And although Billy Davies has hinted he would like to give Sam Hutchinson another chance, it's debatable as to whether the medics would sanction any kind of deal given his record with injuries.

Read Lichaj's Wikipedia biography here

2013-014: The fixtures are out! And the season is getting closer...

One of the days football fans eagerly look forward to every year has finally arrived: the release of the fixtures for the forthcoming season. Now fans deprived of any meaningful action can pre-occupy themselves by planning their arduous journeys to far-flung destinations such as Yeovil, and Bournemouth.

Forest begin their 2013-14 campaign on August 3rd in little over six weeks with a nice easy(?) looking home game against Huddersfield Town, who will probably be tipped by many pundits to be relegated to League One this season. The Reds meted out a 6-1 thrashing back in February when the Terriers visited the City Ground, so they will be sniffing for a bit of revenge. But any thoughts that Forest will come close to repeating that scoreline should be quashed for the time being, as if we don't get that defence sorted soon, we will be on the receiving end of a few heavy beatings!

Their first away trip will be to Blackburn Rovers a week later. Forest's last visit there was on New Year's Day, and needless to say they did not have a very happy start to 2013, losing 3-0 there in Alex McLeish's first away game in charge. Hopefully the story will be different this time around with Billy Davies at the helm.

The game every Forest fan looks forward to most (or in recent years has perhaps dreaded) is the home date with Derby County. Coincidentally, the fixture falls on the same weekend as last year's. The Rams will visit the City Ground on 28th September, with the kick-off or date likely to be altered to accommodate Sky TV coverage.

For the full list of fixtures, please visit the Official Forest website.

Cherry-o Elliot

I'm quite shocked to read that Elliot Ward has signed for Championship newcomers Bournemouth on a one-year deal. I really thought that Forest would consider making his move permanent following a successful loan stint with us last season.

Ward was on loan with us since joining us in October from Norwich City, and although he started off shakily alongside Danny Collins in the heart of defence, he did improve a lot and became quite popular with the Forest fans. Although they did not play together that much, he and Greg Halford seemed to have established a promising partnership in defence, and many Forest supporters were willing to give it another go next season.

I remember Ward saying that he was keen to stay on with Forest, so obviously we didn't make him an offer. I can't believe that he could not find a better club than Bournemouth! He would surely never have chosen them over us. Billy Davies obviously has someone better lined up, and if not, then Forest better get a move on and find a decent replacement sharpish because at the moment our only centre-halves are Halford, Collins, and Jamaal Lascelles, who has yet to force himself into the team, despite featuring for England under-20s.

Why not give Pearce a chance?

Now that Stuart Pearce is sat twiddling his thumbs following his dismissal as manager of the England under-21s, perhaps it is time that he made a return to his rightful home at Forest.

He might have loftier ambitions of securing another management role, but where is the harm in asking him if he feels like doing a bit of defensive coaching at the City Ground? Our defenders would certainly benefit from learning from one of England's best ever full backs, and one of the most influential and passionate players ever to wear a Forest shirt. Just having him around the place would lift everybody a huge amount.

There was a time when I thought he would one day end up managing Forest long-term, but now I am not so sure that is a good idea. He struggled at Manchester City in the Premiership and was shown the door after two years in the job. And after England failed to win any of their games at this year's under-21 championships, the FA decided to put an end to his six-year reign. With that kind of record in management clubs might be a bit reluctant to take a chance on him in the future.

But if management is not his kind of thing, Pearce still has plenty to offer in the game, and I think Forest would be silly to overlook him if they have any suitable job vacancies for him in the near future...