Goodbye to the Miracle Man: how Martin O’Neill’s Forest reign crumbled | Daniel Taylor

Martin O’Neill’s Nottingham Forest exit was down to his poor relationship with key players, and, in some cases, a loss of respect and discipline

If there is one story that sums up Martin O’Neill’s inability to win over his players at Nottingham Forest it probably goes back to a prosaic game at Ipswich on 16 March when his team had to settle for a 1-1 draw against the worst side in the Championship.

Adlene Guedioura, one of the club’s more experienced players, had been left out and remained on the bench as Forest huffed and puffed through a match that hardened the impression O’Neill’s team were falling short of the play-offs. At the end of the game it was customary for the unused substitutes to go through some warm-down exercises on the pitch with the fitness staff. Except Guedioura refused and, when challenged, he started protesting that the game was over and, as far as he was concerned, that meant he was on international duty.

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from Football | The Guardian https://www.theguardian.com/football/2019/jun/28/martin-o-neill-nottingham-forest-inside-story