Nikola Milenković / Никола Миленковић

[Strummer]

Another masterful performance today.

Never looks rattled, always looks like he’s enjoying himself and he’s an absolute giant at the back.

What a signing for 12m.

Best signing of the last decade, for my money.

 

[siforest65]

Another masterful performance today.

Never looks rattled, always looks like he’s enjoying himself and he’s an absolute giant at the back.

What a signing for 12m.

Best signing of the last decade, for my money.

Well deserved man of the match and that says something when Murillo had a blinder too.

Loved that corner when you could see the Spurs defence were shitting themselves at his presence and that guy was lucky not to get a second yellow card for holding.

Fantastic signing

 

[Dex]

Thought it was hilarious in the 2nd half when the Romanian CB for Spurs was trying so so hard to stop him from the set piece. The ref stopped the ball coming in twice because he was trying to hard - and HE STILL managed to get his head on it and almost score!

The Spurs player certainly didn't want to risk meeting him in the tunnel after that

 

[Est.1865]

Thought it was hilarious in the 2nd half when the Romanian CB for Spurs was trying so so hard to stop him from the set piece. The ref stopped the ball coming in twice because he was trying to hard - and HE STILL managed to get his head on it and almost score!

I loved how Murillo got involved in that pushing and shoving match-up too. Clear sign that the lads hunt in packs.

 

[Mr. Blonde]

https://www.squawka.com/en/features/best-premier-league-centre-backs-ranked/

 

[T.B.T.]

The Milenkovic / Murillo / Sels defence we have has really provided us with a force to be reckoned with.

I’d never heard of Milenkovic before he joined us but now, everyone knows exactly who he is and what he does. He’s intimidating yet flexible, he’s a threat in the air and will put his body on the line. He blocks, he clears and he challenges. He’s the kind of defender every goalkeeper dreams of.

Every player has contributed towards and influenced our current league position but our defence is our major strength. I don’t wish to discredit our other defenders (who are all amazing) but Milenkovic is a beast.

 

[FBS]

Did you see him give a bollocking to his teammates when they manage to get a ball through and he had to clear it at the near post?
I think it was in the second half. I've never seen him so mad. But it bloody worked as none of them players he told ever did it again.

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[PK12]

Did you see him give a bollocking to his teammates when they manage to get a ball through and he had to clear it at the near post?
I think it was in the second half. I've never seen him so mad. But it bloody worked as none of them players he told ever did it again.

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He definitely did that when Spurs played a quick/ clever free kick into the box, so that might have been the one. He was bollocking his teammates almost before he'd cleared the ball to safety. What a signing.

 

[valspoodle]

Talking about our defence which until recently was a secret only known to us fans because nobody else bothered with Forest.

But the partnership of Milenkovic and Murillo was highlighted on MOTD last night, shining a light on our two CBs. It's finally sinking in that we're not fluking our points, but earning them with class and tactics.

 

[Captain Sinister]

The focus on Milenkovich and Murillo is merited because as a pairing they are better than any other pairing in the Premiership.
However, it does a dis-service to Aina and Williams, who are both key to our defensive solidity, and also to our fluidity and pace in transition.
Williams has to be one of the most improved players in the Prem.
And I struggle to come up with a better, more consistent right back than Ola.
And Morata is no slouch!
As a 3, the "M Men" are damn nigh impregnable.
To use Strummer's oft-used description, Sels regularly could be playing wearing a cravat and smoking jacket, only occasionally having to put aside his cheroot and brandy to make a heart-stopping, shot stopping save!

 

[harlequin95]

https://www.squawka.com/en/features/best-premier-league-centre-backs-ranked/

View attachment 44704

1. Nikola Milenkovic​

• Team: Nottingham Forest
• Squawka Score: 76%

Standing 6’5″, Nikola Milenkovic is a man mountain. Last season he was one of just two defenders with at least 30 games to have an aerial duel success rate above 70% in Serie A. This season, he’s proving tough to beat on the floor.

The Serbian has won 69.44% of his ground duels for Nottingham Forest, placing him in the 80-95th percentile among central defenders. Milenkovic has also lost just 0.06 challenges and had only 0.06 unsuccessful touches per 90 minutes, both in the 95th percentile.

 

[Gyros Peter]

The focus on Milenkovich and Murillo is merited because as a pairing they are better than any other pairing in the Premiership.
However, it does a dis-service to Aina and Williams, who are both key to our defensive solidity, and also to our fluidity and pace in transition.
Williams has to be one of the most improved players in the Prem.
And I struggle to come up with a better, more consistent right back than Ola.
And Morata is no slouch!
As a 3, the "M Men" are damn nigh impregnable.
To use Strummer's oft-used description, Sels regularly could be playing wearing a cravat and smoking jacket, only occasionally having to put aside his cheroot and brandy to make a heart-stopping, shot stopping save!

I think for all our CB brilliance yesterday it's Sels we should be thanking for at least two of the three points - his pair of saves in each half from BJ were incredible... There was another decent one too.

 

[Cyril]

 

[Rzar]

I love watching him organise us from set plays. Everyone just stays quiet whilst he makes sure everyone is set. Because we are mostly zonal, he isn’t bothered about where the opposition is, he just focuses on our players.

When we clear it out, if you don’t push up with him he will go ballistic at you. Little things like this driving up the standards of everyone, he is the main reason we are where we are. Yes, everyone has been fantastic but he is the driving force behind it.

I would love to play alongside him, he would make you feel 8 foot tall.

 

[Gyros Peter]

I would love to play alongside him, he would make you feel 8 foot tall.

It would be like playing with the bald eagle Gordon Beales in the Long Eaton Sunday League. Super!

 

[marshal99]

compare that to our ex-captain calamity whose frantic way of defending just invites chaos

 

[Gyros Peter]

compare that to our ex-captain calamity whose frantic way of defending just invites chaos

I think it's probably time you got over your dislike of Joe. He's gone, rest easy.

 

[marshal99]

well , it's true though, never understood why people defended him so stoutly when you see a proper defender like milenkovic making a difference.

 

[Gyros Peter]

well , it's true though, never understood why people defended him so stoutly when you see a proper defender like milenkovic making a difference.

The truth is probably somewhere in the middle - he was never as bad as you thought and nowhere near as good as a proper defender like Milenkovic, who incidentally happens to be probably one of the world's best.

Joe was a great servant, an academy product and was a huge part of our promotion winning side - he'll always have my thanks and respect for that.

 

[Rubics]

Because he’s forest through and through, and a big part of why we’re in the prem today. Yes we’ve moved on, but no need to be disrespectful to the folk who got us here.

 

[Red Ray's Redlist]

compare that to our ex-captain calamity whose frantic way of defending just invites chaos

Worrall would've looked a lot better with Murillo sweeping up behind him.

He was part of the journey in getting to a place where a world class operator like Milenkovic signs for us.

Also best to remember that when Joe came through as a youngster he was carrying Matt Mills.

 

[MaxiRobriguez]

The reason we went up is because we had a core of the squad and a manager who really cared about the club.

There were better teams on paper than us, with more resources, more experience, more depth etc, but our togetherness and team spirit drove us on.

No Worall, no promotion, no Milenkovic, no Nuno, no waka waka etc.

 

[little_donkey_congo_red]

So, in the interests of fairness - and hear me out, because I still love this man...
...but I thought he had a really poor first half (by his standards) against Wolves - and it's not a coincidence that Wolves created more good chances than almost any other team have in recent memory during that same half.
I was really disappointed that he seemed to really struggle with that big lump they had up front, and I don't think I've ever seen him beaten so convincingly in the air, so frequently. Thankfully, we got away with it, everyone upped their game in the second half and he won't come up against too many 'throw-back' centre-forwards in that mould.

 

[Subin Hwang]

Today is Christmas in Serbia! Srećan Božić to our top signing! (that's Merry Christmas in Serbian, it's pronounced something like sretsan bozhich)

 

[Est.1865]

So, in the interests of fairness - and hear me out, because I still love this man...
...but I thought he had a really poor first half (by his standards) against Wolves - and it's not a coincidence that Wolves created more good chances than almost any other team have in recent memory during that same half.
I was really disappointed that he seemed to really struggle with that big lump they had up front, and I don't think I've ever seen him beaten so convincingly in the air, so frequently. Thankfully, we got away with it, everyone upped their game in the second half and he won't come up against too many 'throw-back' centre-forwards in that mould.

Agree, definitely upped his game second half. I thought the whole team was a bit ragged for large spells in the first half tbh.

That said, did anyone else notice early in the second half where he ended up our wide clearing out the attacker/ball. Massive smile, cool as you like. Also when they had a late free kick he was getting everyone fired up in the defensive line. Quality.