Freedman the Glasgow Guardiola? No, but all hail his pragmatism

'Who does he think he is, Pep Guardiola?' - wondered no-one ever about Dougie Freedman. Yet there we were, yesterday, ending the game with no strikers on the field.

However, this wasn't a nuanced false-nine led hipster formation, it was a pragmatic home boss shutting up shop against a limp Royals outfit. A false back nine, if you will.

Boss Dougie Freedman wants to see #nffc build momentum following impressive win over Reading https://t.co/zsWXD42pJm pic.twitter.com/n9d8bPCdnw

— Paul Taylor (@nottmtails) November 29, 2015

The Glasgow Guardiola (that definitely won't stick will it?) removed the attacking trio of Ryan Mendes, Chris O'Grady and Nelson Oliveira - bulking up his defensive shield with Michael Mancienne, Liam Trotter and Kelvin Wilson. The latter plugged a Jack Hobbs shaped gap in the back four after the Lincolnshire-born centre half received his marching orders but you saw what Dougie was up to. After countless games of performing well and missing out on the points, he wasn't about to throw any away when his side had finally found the net.

Don't get me wrong, I wasn't exactly calm about all this during the game. It felt a dangerous game to play, ceding ground to a team that - inept as they looked yesterday - are mounting a play-off push. Still I, unlike Dougie, was wrapped up in the nerves and the emotion of a vital three points in the race to push clear of a relegation dogfight.

Freedman continues to do his own thing, unafraid of the consequences of it all going wrong and that, in a strange way, is admirable. When previous Forest bosses have feared the sack they have often made odd decisions or taken big gambles that have cost them their jobs. Hart, Megson, Kinnear and Pearce all allowed the pressure of the situation to lead them to big errors. Freedman remains level headed and reaped the rewards of not getting caught up in the moment yesterday.

Spot the difference: today's #NFFC programme cover design comes from the 1967-68 season. Available for £3. pic.twitter.com/tfIL40vCn1

— Nottingham Forest FC (@Official_NFFC) November 28, 2015

He started the game with the nearest we'd played to a 442 for a while. But, before his haters claimed a moral victory, this was far from a standard 442. Osborn constantly came in from the left, Oliveira dropped deep and Vaughan and Lansbury continued to anchor the midfield. It was a line up that shows how flat formations and numbers are a folly really. Any manager that sets up a team 'by numbers' is probably doing it wrong.

Oliveira, as many of us have predicted, thrived in being able to get involved in the game a little deeper. He benefitted from O'Grady just as much as his strike partner relished having him to knock the ball too. It's perhaps an unlikely couple - one played with Ronaldo, one for Rochdale - but it was more than enough to get the better of Reading, a team we've now inexplicably put 10 goals past in our last 3 encounters. If we're being fair, you imagine they must've missed Stephen Quinn's midfield energy and Steve 'Mr Loyal Royal' Clarke's men are probably the sort of side that are difficult to stop when Sa, Vydra and Blackman all click.

O'Grady finally opened his account with 'the sort of goal you need' to break a drought, dribbling meekly over the line after an Al-Habsi fumble. He grew in confidence, completely bullied Chelsea loanee Michael Hector from start to finish and set up the third for his Portuguese partner. That goal was Nelson's second and showed new-found predatory instinct after a first goal that was fabulously curled in from outside the area.

Credit too should go to Ryan Mendes. The Cape Verde winger switched flanks for this game and, after struggling initially, came into his own to set up both first half goals from the right. He did still remind us of his inconsistency though with a bizarre miss just before Hobbs' red card, a 'head in hands' moment that thankfully didn't prove too costly. Like him or not - and many do find him frustrating - Mendes' pace and dribbling do cause defenders problems and adds a dimension to our attacking play that we'd lack without him.

Freedman will have been pleased by the cutting edge and second half solidity. You get the impression he won't always play this formation or line-up, but he found a combination that worked and won't be afraid to tweak it again for the visit of Fulham. With our injury list and embargo - and the nature of the Championship - we are in need of a pragmatic leader who can handle the task in hand. The 3-1 win over Reading was more evidence that, given our circumstances right now, Freedman is the right fit. He may not be the Messiah, but he's a very pragmatic boy.

You can watch all the goals from #NFFC's 3-1 over Reading on our YouTube channel now. https://t.co/rjZZvv5TNI pic.twitter.com/ftMbSKTA5N

— Nottingham Forest FC (@Official_NFFC) November 29, 2015

Osborn Supremacy showed the way forward

It was damp - and unnaturally chilly - squib that brought the curtain down another ultimately disappointing campaign at the City Ground. The gloom of a flat and pretty pathetic 2-1 defeat at the hands of Russell Slade's Cardiff was only broken by two rays of light.

The first of those came from a man who grew used to bringing us out of our seats. This time, Garath McCleary proved able to get the crowd roaring from 25 miles away as news of his third goal for Reading against Steve McClaren's choking sheep drew a slightly surreal - yet raucous - cheer. Was it a little sad that D***y's demise was all we had to cheer at 2-0 down and heading to 14th? Probably. But did that make it any less joyful? Nope.

And the truth was there was one other glimmer of light to come. Yes Dexter Blackstock netted to reduce the arrears and confirm his own better-than-expected comeback but the real star of the last 20 minutes was Ben Osborn.

First though. let's be brutally honest, Dougie's team selection for this game was best summed up by one inflatable that was thrown around the Lower Bridgford - a cock up. Having the right footed Mancienne - who has spent the last few weeks out of position at right back and central midfield - at left back was a recipe for disaster. The early substitutions were a little bizarre too - Chuba Akpom looked like he had absolutely no idea where to run when he came on and capped off his miserable loan spell with a shot so bad it drew laughs when he was presented with a golden chance. Paterson too came into a confused and disfunctional forward set up on the hour mark while the 90 minutes saw five loanees involved, seemingly wasting a chance to utilise players we will actually have on the books next season.

Worst of all was the omission of Osborn, and he hammered home that mistake with a superb cameo. The midfield trio of an out-of-sorts David Vaughan, sloppy Henri Lansbury and a not-quite-fit Gary Gardner lacked the energy and drive that young Ben has in spades. He came on, took the game by the scruff of the neck and was involved in everything. His arrival sparked the team into life, having a noticeable impact on Todd Kane who marauded forward with great purpose and Paterson - who was suddenly able to pick up the ball in his favoured areas. Osborn was positive, drove forward, passed accurately and must surely be destined to be a starter for next season.

His continued progress has been a joy to watch and its about time we stopped seeing him as the player who can easily be dropped - both Pearce and Freedman have been guilty of this - and realised he's a vital part of the midfield, especially in the current formation.

It's also worth considering - as was pointed out to me - that you can, if you want, consider Osborn's magnificent winner at the sheep dip as the goal that ultimately cost them the play offs. Now tell me that didn't at least draw a cheeky smile??

Worryingly, if the rest of the players were out to earn their Forest futures then there wasn't a lot to be positive about. Dexter battled hard and probably earned his goal but beyond that none of the starting XI will have done anything to further their cause. The football was one-dimensional too. Basically the only tactic seemed to be 'give it to Antonio and hope he can beat the two/three men surrounding him'. It was a bit of a slight on the wily Burke that the plan seemed to bypass his talents.

I worry that we may well have squandered a decent chance in the last few games. We haven't given Hobbs and Mancienne a chance to gel as a partnership, haven't given Osborn the extra responsibility he's deserved and could've seen more of Tyler Walker. The back four was a bit of a shambles and Cardiff, who have themselves been thoroughly underwhelming this season, didn't have to break too much of a sweat to get their lead, even if both finishes were clinical.

Dougie's early games in charge involved progressive attacking football - and brought him a richly deserved longer term contract. Unearthing a few more Ben Osborns will be the key to re-finding that and might ensure we're cheering our own stars - not relying on our old flames to warm us up. Freedman's seen the good and bad of all his charges in his 18 games - it's just a shame that there was so much of the bad in this defeat.

Dougie Freedman? Everything he touches turns to goals

I don't know if Dougie Freedman has a middle name but it ought to be Midas.

I was underwhelmed at his appointment, a feeling not really dispelled by John McGovern offering the explanation of 'he was available' when asked why he was chosen to succeed Stuart Pearce.

Still, football moves on quickly and here I am, six games later, the opposite of underwhelmed (whelmed??!) by what the Scot in the hotseat has served up.

Six games, five wins, 19 goals and just one yellow card to boot. Given how obsessed everyone is by stats these days he's probably tempted to call it quits now, preserving an 83% win rate.

This latest victory will live long in the memory of the travelling Trickies - largely because it served up three top class strikes to overthrow the shellshocked Royals.

Perhaps the most impressive thing about Freedman's tenure so far is how he's kept his good start going in spite of a number of number of challenges. £5m star striker injured? No problem - Dougie rejuvenates Dexter Blackstock and finds a new focal point for the attack. Blackstock struggling to make three games in a week after coming in from the cold? No problem, a quick tweak to our approach and Matty Fryatt comes in to lead the line. Defence out of form and fitness? Dougie digs out Danny Collins and gets him playing his best games in the Garibaldi. Jack Hobbs injured? Jamaal Lascelles slots in for the most assured performances he's put in for a year. Three captains missing (Cohen, Reid and Hobbs)? Lansbury fills the leadership void and thrives with the armband. Key midfield fulcrum struggling to make three games in a week? Mancienne makes up for Gardner's absence in a deep midfield role with a tidy display.

I've heard it said that Freedman has succeeded by 'keeping it simple'. That's maybe true in the way that he's settled on a formation that works in the Championship and that plays to the strengths we have on the wings. However, go back to that list above and you'll see that he's hardly had an easy ride of it. He may have mapped out a solid and effective shape but that job - amid all the issues he's faced - has been far from simple.

With Mancienne, Osborn and Lansbury as the starting midfield trio, the action at the Madejski began firmly in Forest's favour. Osborn stood out with his purposeful running, tigerish work rate and smart passing as Reading dropped deep. Maybe Steve Clarke's men were buoyed by their results at Ipswich and Derby and wanted to play this as an away game? Still, this looked a little alien to us - probably as we were still recovering from not having a lot of the ball against Bournemouth - and there was just a skewed Osborn effort and a blazed Antonio strike to show for our early endeavours.

Reading then woke up. Everything they did all afternoon came through the former Reds duo of Gunter and McCleary on the right. I actually thought Danny Fox stood up well to the test but, with little or no help from the disappointing Paterson, the crosses and chances started to come in the second part of the first half. The first two were spurned by Simon Cox - one of their own they sung as though it a good thing. As those chances went begging and his game disappeared into all-too-familiar anonymity the Forest faithful were only too happy to remind the hosts he was, indeed, one of their own. The other two chances were thwarted by an ever alert Lascelles - the first a block to divert a Pogrebnyak effort wide and the second a clearance off the line to deny McCleary.

Safely back in the dressing room at 0-0, the Midas manager struck again. Seeing that Paterson was struggling he brought on Chris Burke and it almost immediately paid dividends. The Scottish winger's first foray down his flank caused havoc and instantly gave notice of our greater threat. His introduction also meant Michail Antonio switched to his preferred left flank and put him up against Chris Gunter, who didn't seem to relish the problems posed by the power and pace of the man who was plucked from non-league by Reading.

Still, the game required a touch of class to tip it properly in favour of Freedman's men. It came from the boot of Ben Osborn. The Sheep Slayer deliciously curled in a long range effort past a stranded Adam Federici. He was so nonchalant about it at first that we didn't quite believe it had gone in. I guess he's getting used to this. It was a sublime strike though and capped off what was, for me, a man of the match display.

Antonio then turned back the clock to last week, powering past a succession of players before letting fly with an effort that, unlike against Bolton, whistled wide. Reading weren't done yet though. Darlow denied Pogrebnyak with a smart save and Gunter fired over a dangerous cross that evaded everyone as it fizzed through the six yard box.

Our attacking play was much swifter and sharper in the second half though and when the ball broke to Antonio as the clock approached 70 minutes he burst forward again - this time releasing Fryatt who twisted and turned his way into the box before doubling the lead. His boss, no doubt biased by his goal poaching past, rated this his favourite of the three we scored all afternoon.

My favourite, however, came from the boot of substitute Gary Gardner. He was sent on to replace the tiring Fryatt with Antonio moving up front (for five minutes before Blackstock came on for Antonio we played with no strikers - who knew Dougie was the Scottish Guardiola eh?). Gardner looks like a proper footballer - the sort of underrated but talented midfielder who graced Trentside in the late 80s and early 90s. For this cameo he wasn't the deepest midfielder of the central trio and so had licence to roam. And roam he did, right up to 35 yards out from goal, when he let rip with a thunderbolt that satisfyingly kissed the underside of the bar on its way in.

In a nerdy way we ought, really, to have been almost as impressed by what followed. With ten minutes to go we witnessed a well organised solid unit keep its shape, keep working hard and shut out Reading in their quest for a consolation effort. No one even 'fed the Yak', who I'm not sure had a kick when he came off the bench. It was disciplined and just what we'd been missing under Pearce. Lichaj was flawless, Collins and Lascelles looked a good blend of experience and youth, having both previously had their fair share of shaky moments in the past year or so, and Lansbury and Mancienne worked their socks off to make sure the battle was won.

The contrast was even more stark for me given that I only get to the occasional away fixture. The last time I saw the Reds on the road was at Huddersfield. Not only was the result the exact opposite that time out but the performance was markedly different too. We were a shambles across the back and looked vulnerable every time the Terriers came forward. We couldn't get a foothold in the midfield and offered little or no attacking threat.

This also ended my own Reading hoodoo. I'd previously seen us put to the sword 1-0 on Good Friday 2003 as the play-offs loomed under Paul Hart and then again 3-0 a few months later in the early part of the disappointing following season. By then a frustrated Hart explained his only 'plan B' would be to throw Michael Dawson up front, so stretched were his resources. My next two visits were largely forgettable early season draws, a 0-0 in 2009 and 1-1 in 2010. It seems it took the Midas touch to break that duck.

So there it is. Freedmania runs wild. Let's hope for more sunshine, moonlight and good times from Dougie. And don't spoil it for yourself by stressing about the play offs. It's sobering to think that Billy's second coming brought a run of six successive wins after an initial draw. That was at a similar stage of the season when we couldn't quite chase down an impossible dream. Pearce also began with an identical points record to Dougie from his first six games.

Freedman's 'super six' have been more entertaining and convincing than either of those two runs, particularly Pearce's. He'll have more challenges thrown his way in the weeks to come and won't always be able to rely on the sort of long range raspers that Osborn and Gardner cracked in on Saturday. Still, given the way he's begun, we should stop being surprised if and when he finds the answer to any predicament to come.