Nottingham Forest ended their season with a win over Burnley at Turf Moor and one player showed why he deserves to be kept.
The Reds have endured a pretty rotten Premier League campaign but they did finish with a win in Lancashire.
Nuno Espirito Santo has achieved the mission accomplished by keeping Forest in the top flight for another campaign.
Now, Forest must fight to make sure they can enjoy a smoother campaign in the Premier League next season.
Against the Clarets today we saw one player showcase exactly why he deserves to stay at Forest next season.
Nottingham Forest should offer Chris Wood a new deal
The Reds talisman took his goal total to 15 for the campaign at Turf Moor as he silenced another former club of his.
In December, Wood returned to Newcastle to score a stunning hat-trick as Forest claimed a big way away from home.
Here, he returned to Turf Moor to score his first after just 80 seconds and then added another following a VAR check shortly after.
Wood has stepped up to the mantle exceptionally well this season – with Taiwo Awoniyi missing much of it through injury.
When he signed from Newcastle for £15 million, some fans weren’t satisfied with the deal.
Wood had played little football at St James’ Park and he did manage just one goal during the second half of the 2022/23 campaign.
This season he’s bounced back with aplomb and from the off he’s looked leaner, fitter and sharper in front of goal.
Wood can play a role at the City Ground next season
The fitness of Awoniyi is a real problem for Forest.
As a result, keeping Wood makes a lot of sense and a new contract offer should be on the horizon for the striker.
There will likely be a bit of a discussion to be had between Wood and Forest over the terms of the deal.
The 32-year-old currently earns £80,000-a-week and perhaps the club would love to get him to accept lesser terms for another year.
Wood is the club’s top goalscorer by some distance this season and letting him leave doesn’t make sense.
Given his advancing years, there’s an argument that Wood shouldn’t be the primary choice in attack next season.
However, in our view, he’s more than capable of doing a job as a squad player and given that he looks fit and sharp, Forest have to do whatever they can to keep Wood.
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