Nuno Espirito Santo Discusses Manchester United Match, Owner’s Vision, and Team Clinicality

Nottingham Forest manager Nuno Espirito Santo addressed reporters ahead of Saturday’s Premier League fixture against Manchester United, scheduled for a 17:30 GMT kick-off. The following are the main points from his press conference: Espirito Santo described facing Manchester City and Manchester United in consecutive away matches as a “big ask,” but affirmed: “We are ready. Let’s recover and fight for the game.” He noted that planning for Ruben Amorim’s Manchester United team presents challenges, stating: “Their results are difficult to predict because Ruben in this moment is changing a lot. I think he is trying to get to know players better. The idea is there, we don’t know exactly who is going to play, but for sure they have quality players.” Nevertheless, Nuno’s main attention remains on his own squad and their performance at Old Trafford. He commented: “They are quality and have talented players. The shape is there. The personnel and the players we cannot identify who is going to start but our approach is always the same. Let’s focus on the things they have been doing but also let’s look at getting the advantage. It is always a tough place to go but let’s focus on being positive on the game.” Regarding owner Evangelos Marinakis and his aspirations for the club, Nuno stated: “His ambition and desire is to grow and improve. We try to follow, doing the best we can. I think we are in a good way of building a team and a squad and if you look back at the way we kept our players, it was a good moment in terms of stability and now we are trying to grow. We are trying to go game by game because the engine of the club is the team. My focus and dedication is there so we can proceed.” Despite a recent 3-0 defeat against Manchester City, Nuno identified positive aspects in his team’s performance, remarking: “We were disappointed about the result but looking at the game, we could challenge ourselves and that was our main idea. It was useful for us, even if it sounds absurd, it was very useful for us going forward.” The Forest manager expressed a desire for his squad to exhibit greater clinicality, explaining: “We know that we are not going to have many chances but I am positive about it because we reach areas that show the team is producing. Let’s try to go again and improve on those areas and be more clinical. Then it will be a different game.”