Roy Hodgson has heaped praise on Nottingham Forest and boss Steve Cooper for avoiding relegation from the Premier League and says the scenes after their win over Arsenal were “touching”.
The Reds confirmed their top-flight status with victory over the Gunners last week amid a fine run that saw them take 10 points from their last five games.
Cooper’s side now go into the final day of the season free of any anxiety and will look to sign off the campaign with an away win as they plot for a stress-free campaign next term.
Hodgson paid his respect to the Reds for the way they have defied some of the pundits and says Forest will be a tough examination.
Roy Hodgson said: “[Cooper] has done a very good job – in particular I think the last five games they have had an incredible upsurge in form. They have taken 10 points from their last five games. That’s top-of-table form not avoiding relegation form. They have taken everyone by surprise at bottom who are fighting relegation, because many clubs thought they wouldn’t do that well. Hats off to him, hats off to his players and staff. It was very touching last weekend when they beat Arsenal and you saw the scenes after the game. It makes you realise how much staying in this league and doing well means to everyone, not just to your staff and people at the club but also to the fans. Congratulations to him. We know on Sunday if we want to finish the season well we will be facing tough opponents.”
