MIDLANDS TRIO ARE FLYING TOWARDS PREMIER

I WAS tempted to go down the bookies this week and have a bet on all three East Midlands clubs reaching the Premier League.

But the way things are going, I don’t think I’d have got great odds. Leicester, Derby and Forest are all flying.

Leicester are away and gone at the top and showed an enormous amount of character to come back from 2-1 down to Forest with ten men in midweek.

When you’re a manager and you see your team do that away from home, you think ‘We’re going up’. They fell way last year but it won’t happen again.

Derby’s two victories this week have put them right back in the mix for automatic promotion. Since Steve McClaren came in, they’ve mastered the art of winning tight matches when they aren’t playing well.

That’s the sign of a good side, as was winning at Sheffield Wednesday in midweek. A couple of months ago, that would have been an easy game. But the Owls are buzzing under Stuart Gray and Derby had to withstand a lot of pressure.

Steve’s also made a great signing in on-loan Chelsea striker Patrick Bamford, who won the match with yet another world-class strike.

Forest and Billy Davies aren’t popular with everyone, but listening to the interview with their Kuwaiti owner Fawaz Al-Hasawi, I have to say the signs are good.

I’ve worked with good owners and bad owners, and he seemed genuine when he talked about stability and building up the club.

If I was a Forest fan I’d be starting to think seriously of life back in the big time. Even if they don’t make it this season, I think it’s only a matter of time with the financial support AlHasawi has committed.