OPINION: At what point does a niggling doubt become a big worry at Nottingham Forest

Is there a specific moment when a distant worry about something is suddenly a deep concern?
Nottingham Forest are just two points above the drop zone after a terrible run of form. (Photo by Alex Pantling/Getty Images)Nottingham Forest are just two points above the drop zone after a terrible run of form. (Photo by Alex Pantling/Getty Images)
Nottingham Forest are just two points above the drop zone after a terrible run of form. (Photo by Alex Pantling/Getty Images)

At what point does a niggling thought become a full-blown and actual problem? It would be helpful if such a thing as a worry-o-meter existed: a device with a big red arrow that swings past a big red line, thus making it clear the very moment when a worry becomes an actual concern.

Sadly, such a thing is yet to be invented. To pinpoint such a moment remains a very unscientific thing. The best guide we have is that most human of signposts: a feeling. As a direct consequence, such a feeling is very fallible in nature.

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With only three wins all season, Forest are in a bit of a pickle. Of that there can be no doubt. It is a deeply worrying thought that only one of these wins was convincing and that was against one of the few teams currently below them in the table. The other two victories were only secured in added time and even then, one of those – against Coventry City – was barely deserved.

It isn’t so much a case of the oft misquoted line, ‘Houston, we have a problem here’ but rather, a situation in which the actual line seems more appropriate: ‘Houston, we’ve had a problem. We've had a MAIN B BUS UNDERVOLT.’

Jim Lovell’s choice of language to communicate his predicament carries a very small but subtle alternative meaning to the line used in the movie. His use of the past tense when referring to the problem carries more urgency. For him, the problem has occurred and simply cannot be undone. What he is relaying to ground control in Houston is that he requires advice and guidance on how to deal with the problem. The complications caused by a ‘main B Bus undervolt’ remain utterly mysterious to the vast majority yet regardless, it requires urgent attention.

In using the slightly different tensed ‘we have a problem’, Hollywood implies that the problem is currently unfolding and as a result, perhaps carries the implication that something can be done to arrest it, to prevent it getting any more problematic.

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All of this is indicative of Forest’s current predicament. The problem has occurred. Forest are not only undergoing a problem but have had a problem. The problem continues to be unfolding but significantly, it is a problem that has already happened. In short, it can’t be packed up neatly and put back in the box.

The causes and blame for this problem are varied and complex but the important thing for now is to accept the size of the problem. It is clear that this is not a ‘main B Bus undervolt’ type of problem; it is one of a much simpler nature: relegation.

That’s clearly not to say that Forest are going to be relegated. The opening third of the season has been a real problem and what remains is to deal with the fallout, specifically, a fight to avoid relegation.

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