Dawson mightily impressive – 3 things learnt from Nottingham Forest win over Bolton

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Nottingham Forest produced a display of complete dominance against Bolton Wanderers last night, running out 3-0 victors at the University of Bolton Stadium.

Joe Lolley scored another scrumptious goal to ignite a Forest win, whilst a brace from the irrepressible Lewis Grabban put the seal on a solid performance.

The Reds had found themselves under a bit of pressure to deliver. Some fans were highly critical of their showing in Saturday’s 2-1 reversal against Norwich City at the City Ground.

Such a convincing win has now given Aitor Karanka’s men a belief that they can get something on Saturday when they travel to face table topping Leeds United at Elland Road.

Following the resounding success, The Boot Room looked at three things we learnt about Nottingham Forest…

Michael Dawson must be a starter

The experienced central defender made just his third start of the campaign at Bolton but his presence was clearly evident in the back four.

Dawson typified his persona with a commanding performance and although the Trotters didn’t threaten a great deal on the night, the 34-year-old was ready for anything they might throw at the Reds.

Given his age it does seem unlikely he will be able to play three times in a week any time soon but on this showing he simply has to be playing more often than not.

Crowd pressure at home is having an impact

It would appear that Aitor Karanka was spot on when he said that his side were feeling the pressure of playing in front of an expectant City Ground crowd.

Last night at the University of Bolton Stadium, 1001 traveling Forest fans backed their team in a positive fashion and the Reds’ performance suggest that the players felt relaxed enough to play a brand of free-flowing football.

The home wins will come no doubt but it is important that the City Ground faithful stick with the team, even when things aren’t perhaps going according to plan.

Adlene Guedioura is a changed man

When Karanka persuaded the combative midfielder to rejoin Forest in January, early performances from the Algerian suggested he had regressed somewhat as a player.

Fast forward eight months, however, and it is quite clear to see why the Reds’ boss was so desperate to sign Guedioura.

The 32-year-old was a surprise omission from the starting line-up in the weekend defeat to Norwich and returned to the fold last night. If Forest are going to try and play on the front foot then his driving presence is a must in the middle of the park.