Ryan Yates still believes Nottingham Forest have an “incredible chance” to have a positive season with a deep Europa League run.
After finishing 13th in the league stage of the competition, Forest overcame a two-legged draw with Fenerbahce 4-2 on aggregate to reach the last 16, with Midtjylland next.
Forest and Midtjylland have already met in the Europa League this season, with the Danish side beating Ange Postecoglou’s Forest team 3-2 at the City Ground in October.
And since then, Forest’s form, particularly in the Premier League, has not improved, with the Tricky Trees currently in 17th place and just one point above the relegation zone.
Now, under Vitor Pereira, supercomputer Opta has given Forest a 58% chance of reaching the Europa League quarter-finals, and Yates believes his team can put in a strong performance at home this Thursday.
“Midtjylland are a very strong set-piece team and we are under no illusions that we need to be at our best physically and mentally,” Yates told reporters.
“We learned a lot from that night. [in the league phase]and hopefully we can implement it.
“We have an incredible opportunity to continue having a positive season. We have to take advantage of these opportunities when they present themselves.”
Forest have a 65% winning percentage in the first legs of major European ties (won 15/23, D3 L5), but they face a Midtjylland team that often enjoys these chances.
They have won four of their nine games against English teams in all European competitions (D2 L3), and all four wins were against different clubs (Manchester City, Southampton, Manchester United and Forest).
Furthermore, Midtjylland have won 11 of their last 13 games in European competitions (including knockouts), although the two games they have not won in that run are their two most recent away games (D1 L1).
Pereira has had a mixed start in the Forest dugout since replacing Sean Dyche in February, winning one of his five games in charge (D1 L3), although in his last result his team twice came from behind to take a point at Manchester City.
And while survival in the Premier League will be considered a priority, Pereira insisted his team will give everything in both competitions in the hope of success.
“I’ll try to do the best I can, try to keep the team competitive in both games,” Pereira said. “We have quality.
“It’s just a matter of connecting them, organizing them and giving them confidence to act and be themselves.
“For now we will try to be competitive in both: try to score points and results in the Europa League and the Premier League.”