Nottingham Forest’s pre-season training preparations in Portugal are set to become that little bit more serious on Friday evening when The Reds face Primeira Liga club Sporting Clube de Braga.
Philippe Montanier’s side will face a stern test at the Estadio da Nora as they face a side which finished last season in fourth position in Portuguese football’s top flight.
Forest go into the match having suffered a 3-0 defeat to Tottenham Hotspur in a behind closed doors match but having beaten Millwall 2-1 in their latest outing on Tuesday. Dexter Blackstock and Oliver Burke got the goals against The Lions and the SC Braga friendly provides new Forest boss Montanier with another opportunity to test the quality in his first team squad.
Following Friday’s pre-season clash, The Reds will return to the UK and face a swift return to domestic action with a trip to Vale Park to face League 1 club Port Vale on Tuesday evening before competing in a Nottingham derby when they cross the river to face neighbours Notts County next Saturday. Forest will finish their pre-season preparations by hosting Premier League new boys Hull City at The City Ground on Saturday 30 July.
With new boss Philippe Montanier having been in the Forest hotseat for little over a fortnight, the squad is continuing to be moulded ahead of the new season and with further new arrivals expected at the club in the coming weeks it is hoped that The Reds will be raring to go when the 2016/2017 season begins with a home fixture against Burton Albion on Saturday 6 August.
