Nottingham Forest boss Steve Cooper says 'Nottingham Forest means everything to me' amid rumoured interest
(Photo by Ryan Pierse/Getty Images)

Nottingham Forest manager Steve Cooper insisted he is loyal to the club having been linked with other Premier League jobs.

The Daily Mail had reported that The Reds' boss was being considered by two other Premier League clubs for the managerial post, but he was quick to deny any move elsewhere.

Ahead of a vital game for Forest against Everton, Cooper spoke about the injuries at the club, facing Sean Dyche, the remainder of the season and his loyalty to the East Midlands club.

  • On the team news

Cooper confirmed that whilst Dean Henderson is recovering as expected, a scan showed he will be unlikely to join training until after the international break at the end of the month.

The Welshman also said Lewis O'Brien had been 'let down' after his appeal to move to Blackburn was rejected.

He said he had received no communication from Rovers, calling it a 'complete mismanagement' of the situation.

Whilst several players are making progress, Cooper said he did not expect anyone to return to the side for Sunday afternoon.

"I'm not sure about any players coming back, it doesn't go that way at the moment for us, Brennan [Johnson] sort of walked off at West Ham, so we'll see where he is with regards to the weekend.

"Lots of players getting closer to being fit and returning, some obviously quite a way away, but when they're back, great, we'll get them back involved as and when.

"We focus on the lads who are available so we can be at our best come the next game against Everton.

"I can't put a timescale on how long we will be out for [Serge Aurier], he's obviously picked up a few niggles since he's joined us but he's working hard and let's see.

"He's making good progress [Taiwo Awoniyi], he's out on the grass now and he's running.

"He's not with the team yet and he's not kicking any balls but he's made progress not just in terms of straight line running but some exercises which are change of direction and things is that which is a positive step for him, but he's still a few weeks away from training.

"Yatesy [Ryan Yates] and Moussa [Niakhate] are back in training, they are close to being back involved but for different reasons, Moussa's been out for a long while and we have to be really careful with him.

"We're desperate for him to be involved and for him to play but he's had a long term injury."

Ahead of his first meeting with Sean Dyche, Cooper praised the former Burnley boss, but said his side would need to focus on themselves rather than being preoccupied by how The Toffees will set up.

"There's lots of managers I haven't faced, especially this season, I've done a few years now but not as many as some of the guys that we come up against so it's nothing new really coming up against a new manager.

"I've met him a couple of times, an experienced manager and a good one at that.

"Like always though, you're just getting your team ready for the next game and regardless of who the manager is and things like that you just focus on the players and look forward to hopefully being at our best.

"There's always differences when a new manager goes in and it's something you have to be aware of for sure, I think we're still in a place where we have to focus on ourselves and that's sort of our mentality anyway.

"Of course you look at the opponent and you see what they may or may not do but you have sometimes the best laid plans in a game and they never come into fruition anyway.

"We have to focus on ourselves, we owe our supporters a better performance than last week, especially that last 10 or 15 minutes that wasn't good in any way, shape or form." 

  • On the run-in

Whilst they are currently out of the drop zone, The Reds know that any potential slip ups could leave them under threat of relegation.

Matches against sides like Everton who are also in the fight for survival will be crucial.

Cooper said he felt it was an honour to be involved in such an important stage of the campaign. 

"We've come into the stage of the season now, wherever you may be in the league, where there's a little bit more on the games and we're really excited about being part of that.

"I think wherever you are in the league there's always a small ambition to improve and also the opposite of that [can happen] and it can go both ways.

"I'm a huge believer in controlling the controllable, today it's our training, our recovery, preparation and whatever else comes up being a professional athlete, same tomorrow and on game day it's about delivering when it counts.

"[If we] focus on that then league positions take care of themselves."

  • On his future

Cooper is somewhat of a hero in the red side of Nottingham after he guided The Reds to the Premier League having been away from the competition for 23 years.

After being awarded with a new contract after a disappointing start to the campaign, many questioned whether Forest had made the right choice.

There is still a lot to play for, but with the club out of the relegation zone, there had been talk of interest in the 43-year-old, but he rubbished any talk of an exit.

"Nottingham Forest means everything to me and this job that I do, from the day I walked in to where we're at now.

"The only thing that's important apart from my family in my life is this football club."