Davies to recommend 'major' additions for Forest in January

BILLY Davies will recommend that Nottingham Forest complete 'major work' during the January transfer window, to ensure they remain competitive in the Championship.

The Reds boss wants to add as many as five new faces to his ranks, as he believes a squad of 24 players is required to see them through to the end of the campaign.

Forest will be looking to extend their seven-match unbeaten run when Bristol City visit the City Ground today.

But Davies fears that his squad is already becoming stretched by an injury list of just four or five players, with James Perch, Robert Earnshaw and Joel Lynch all likely to be included on the bench, despite not being fully fit.

"I will do the exact same as I have done since day one," said Davies. "I will recommend to the board – as I did in the last January transfer window and in the summer – which players we should be looking at.

"Whatever happens is down to Nigel Doughty, it is his club, it is his money and he can do what he feels is necessary.

"But I have said since I arrived that I would like a squad of 24 players. I have always said that we need to carry a strong 24-man squad – and strong is the key word.

"Do the calculations yourself. You can work out what work we have to do to get the kind of squad we want.

"No doubt, we are talking about major work."

Davies may resume his efforts to land Spurs full-back Gareth Bale, while he is also likely to target a central defender, a winger and a goalscoring central midfielder.

But any transfers will have to be approved and secured by the club's acquisitions panel.

Davies is delighted with Forest's current run of form however – and admits they are playing far better football than he had expected.

"The performances have been better than I thought they would be," he said.

"I expected that I would have to do the same as I had done at my previous clubs, which is to come in and make the side hard to beat and then, in year two or three, start to work on the flowing football.

"Then you can start to get a pattern to your play and perform with a bit of stability.

"But I have to say I am really surprised at how quickly the players have gelled and at the quality of football they are playing.

"That has come a lot sooner than I expected. I am delighted and I hope it continues but, at the same time, there is a lot of work ahead."