Pereira Says It Is A ‘pity’ Forest Must Prioritise Premier League Status Over Europa League

Vitor Pereira has conceded it is simply a “pity” Nottingham Forest consciousness compelled to prioritise nan Premier League complete nan Europa League, pinch nan caput coach saying nan owner, Evangelos Marinakis, has stressed that home endurance is king.

The fiercely eager Marinakis targeted European silverware aft nan nine returned to continental title for nan first clip since 1995-96, but though Forest are attempting to overturn a first-leg shortage successful nan last-16 against Midtjylland, location is an acceptance that relegation to nan Championship would beryllium a disaster.

Forest, beaten 1-0 astatine location by Midtjylland past week, must triumph successful Denmark connected Thursday to beforehand to nan quarter-finals, but Pereira is expected to make respective changes to his squad pinch Sunday’s travel to Tottenham successful mind. Forest are extracurricular nan Premier League relegation area only connected extremity difference pinch 8 games to play.

“For me, it is simply a pity that I request to make decisions, to deliberation not conscionable astir this crippled but nan adjacent 2 games,” Pereira said. “I request to deliberation astir it because it is important for nan club. Of course, nan Europa League is important for nan nine but nan [Premier] League is very important for nan club.

“The adjacent [domestic] crippled is against Tottenham and Tottenham are competing pinch america for nan aforesaid target, to beryllium safe successful nan Premier League. I must effort to compete successful some competitions, [but] I cannot hide nan adjacent crippled successful nan Premier League, I cannot hide it because it’s an important crippled for us.

“I judge to play connected our level and to compete successful a measurement I want to compete we request to beryllium caller mentally and physically. If we were successful a safe position successful nan Premier League table, it [would be] wholly different.”

Pereira said he has discussed nan reality of nan business pinch Marinakis, who spent astir £200m connected players past summer and was adamant nan finance would put nan nine successful nan speech to triumph nan Europa League. “He wants to support nan nine successful nan Premier League, first of all, and effort to compete successful nan Europa League, of course,” nan Forest caput coach said.

“This is what he said to me: it is important to support nan nine successful nan Premier League and to effort to compete successful nan Europa League. We will effort our champion to qualify.”

A full-strength Forest squad, barring semipermanent absentees specified arsenic Chris Wood, travelled to Jutland, including Morgan Gibbs-White and Murillo, but immoderate cardinal players will beryllium rested. Wood trained pinch nan group connected Wednesday pinch a position to returning to action adjacent period aft being sidelined since October.

Pereira said: “We are successful a infinitesimal wherever we request to beryllium united. I cannot person [a group of] players for a crippled and [another group of] players for different game. I cannot abstracted nan players.”