Nottingham Forest will return home once their tour to Spain ends on Friday night.
Nuno Espirito Santo endured his first defeat this summer, as Forest lost 1-0 to Elche.
So far, Forest’s summer has been quite promising, with solid effort both on and off the pitch.
Evangelos Marinakis was able to move rapidly during the summer transfer window, having already signed five players for Nuno.
And the Portuguese manager has been able to pull some good performances out of his team.
After returning from Spain on Friday night, one player at the club seemed to have been trying to impress the management.
Nottingham Forest player impressed again against Elche.
Forest’s effort against the Spanish club on Friday night was their weakest of the preseason thus far.
A few players went away with some credit, but the Reds will want to put that one behind them before returning to the City Ground next week.
Pre-season friendly are primarily viewed as an opportunity to improve match fitness ahead of the new season.
However, for other players, it is an opportunity to demonstrate their value to the management and work their way into his plans.
Omar Richards, who made his Forest debut last week, is one guy who has been doing just that.
The left-back has finally been given minutes in a Forest shirt, and he scored on debut against Sunderland.
After the final whistle in Friday’s defeat to Elche, writer Sarah Clapson admitted Richards was a player who took advantage of his opportunity in Spain.
“Seems determined to make the most of these friendlies and catch Nuno’s eye,” she told me.
“Made some good runs down the left and played a dangerous ball across goal after one.”
What’s ahead for Omar Richards at Nottingham Forest?
Nuno could not have asked for much more from the 26-year-old, who has recently returned from a season-long loan spell with Forest’s sister club Olympiacos.
If Richards impresses Nuno enough in the coming weeks, he may be able to compete for a position at left back.
The next game is against Villarreal at the City Ground, where the £8.5 million Richards could get his first chance to impress in front of the Forest fans.
Julian Bennett, a former Forest player, was astonished by Richards’ performance against Sunderland; it is now up to Nuno to decide whether he has done enough to earn an opportunity next season.
