Oliver Glasner's false starts – lessons for Forest from his Palace and Frankfurt struggles New York Times (Online) Paul Taylor The gloomy look of frustration that Oliver Glasner wore as he trudged down the tunnel at the City Ground on Sunday will have been starkly familiar to the fans of both Crystal Palace and Frankfurt. Supporters of the South London club will remember a set of positive emotions more vividly — such as the sight of Glasner lifting the FA Cup or the Conference League trophy. But the foundations for those successes were built on patience, with the Austrian winning only one of his first six games in charge. The same is true in Germany, where Glasner is held in high regard, after leading Eintracht Frankfurt to the 2021-2022 Europa League title and subsequently into the Champions League and the German Cup final. But the start to his tenure in Frankfurt was also far less memorable, with Glasner overseeing just one victory in his first 10 Bundesliga games — while simultaneously going out of the DFB-Pokal (German Cup) in the first round, to third-tier side Waldhof Mannheim. That start led to intense scrutiny on Glasner, who was questioned by the media over everything from his style of play to his fashion choices on the touchline. At Frankfurt, Glasner felt the key was having the courage to stick to his beliefs, but also to retain flexibility. “There were many different things,” the Austrian said, when asked in a press conference what he did to turn things around. “It was not that I came in on Monday morning and said, 'Right, we are going to do A, B, C, F and G'. No, there were always talks with my staff and players. You just get a feeling about what is necessary. “We had a meeting today (at Forest), where we decided that we would not show the players anything about Ipswich, because I felt it was more important to talk about us as a team. These are the decisions you make, that make a difference.” Even at Wolfsburg — the club Glasner coached between 2019 and 2021 — his side drew their first four league games, before registering a win. At Nottingham Forest, Glasner has only replicated the first part of those familiar patterns, with one win in their first seven Premier League games, as well as being knocked out of the Carabao Cup by Leeds United. But, amid it all, there have been numerous positives. A 0-0 draw with Tottenham could easily have been a win, a 1-0 defeat to Coventry City was hardly a smash-and-grab, but the least Forest deserved was a point, while Forest should have hammered Palace at Selhurst Park. Then came the source of Glasner's most recent frustration and that subdued walk back to the dressing room: a 1-0 defeat to Arsenal in which his side had held the Champions at bay for 80 minutes, before succumbing to a deflected goal, their opponents' only effort on target. It left Forest in the bottom three. But their position is not reflected by the mood at the City Ground where, amid the frustration, there is optimism. “If I was a Forest fan, yes, I would be feeling relaxed,” says Palace fan and former programme contributor, Chris Waters. “Look at the team they have and the manager they have got… I would have zero concerns. “The game at Selhurst was a joke, Forest should have won by a big margin. Glasner is a brilliant manager. He is arguably the best we have ever had. We won three trophies under Glasner — we do count the Community Shield.” There are similarities between the circumstances of Glasner's start at Palace and his early tenure at the City Ground. The Austrian took over the Palace role from former England manager Roy Hodgson in February 2024, and the change in approach was huge. “His first game in charge was like a beam of light had come from heaven… under Roy it was stodgy at best,” says Waters. “Glasner's first game was a free-flowing 3-0 win over Burnley. It was great. “Then we hit a run like Forest are going through now. We lost at Tottenham. We had a 1-1 draw with Luton when they scored with the last kick. We drew with Forest. We lost a dreadful game at Bournemouth 1-0. We had our usual defeat to Manchester City. “But, after that, we went to Liverpool and won and it was there you realised what he was trying to do. The players understood their positions, we felt as though we had an identity. You know what Glasner's game is — playing with wing-backs, being quick in transition, counter-attacking. That is when it fell into place. “We won six of the last seven, we beat Manchester United 4-0 and Aston Villa 5-0. We won at Wolves with 10 men. Everyone knew their jobs and we were flying. But it did take time for us to get to that point.” Vitor Pereira, Forest's previous head coach, who departed in the summer after keeping Forest up at the end of a tumultuous campaign, had a different approach to Hodgson. But Glasner's appointment still represented significant change. The Forest players have had to adjust to a new formation and way of playing. Glasner was wary of going from a passive side to being a team that is expected to press high and has tried to implement things gradually. But the energy and tempo of this Forest side have increased markedly. Players have also had to change roles. Neco Williams is a wing-back, rather than his usual full-back role. The central defenders now play in a three. James McAtee has flourished in a deeper midfield role, while Dan Ndoye and Morgan Gibbs-White have become a pair of No 10s, behind the lone striker. All these changes were mirrored at Palace and, while there were teething troubles, the answer was simply to persevere. “Glasner never changed his approach — it was always just his ethos. It was not like he altered anything for it to click,” says Waters. “The fans could see what he was trying to do, so there was the patience. There was a degree of calm while we waited for it to work. If Forest were to even think about sacking him, it would be crazy.” At Forest, there has been no thought given to such things. The mood is patient. At a recent meeting with fan groups, chief football officer George Syrianos put things plainly: Glasner has a three-year contract and, with his record of achievement, will be given the time that was not always afforded to some of his predecessors. As for Glasner, his past experience at Frankfurt and Palace gives him encouragement. “Yes, 100 per cent. It is not about the results. It is more about other things. The tactical part. The psychological part. The physical. But what is important for me is the culture at the club. Is it ambitious? Are people addicted to success? Everyone has to be hungry to achieve something. “What (I have learned) makes a difference is how hungry you are, the standards you set. This is where we definitely have potential.”