Oliver Glasner believes Morgan Gibbs-White can earn his way back into the England squad and has backed the Nottingham Forest midfielder to be involved at the next home European Championship.
Gibbs-White was left out of England’s squad for the World Cup, a decision that came as a surprise to some. Glasner, however, doesn’t see much point in dwelling on what happened this summer.
“Honestly, we never talked about it because it is in the past. It’s gone,” Glasner said.
Instead, the Forest boss has pointed his player towards the next major target.
“I think his goal when we talk about England must be the home Euros in two years, so that means he has two years to do better – and he wants to do better. And then he will play for England at the home Euros, I’m really convinced.”
Glasner wants even more from Morgan Gibbs-White
Gibbs-White is coming off a strong Premier League season, and Glasner believes the midfielder has plenty of room to take his game further.
“For a midfielder to score 15 Premier League goals in a season is amazing,” Glasner said.
The Forest head coach is particularly pleased with Gibbs-White’s attitude. Rather than being satisfied with what he achieved last season, the 26-year-old wants to improve again.
That is exactly what Glasner wants from him.
“Morgan is working very hard in training, he’s listening and we try to help him to get into the positions where he can score and create assists.”
Glasner’s coaching staff are working closely with Gibbs-White on the small details that can make a difference. That includes his positioning, his movement when Forest regain possession and finding better opportunities to contribute in the final third.
The Forest boss also believes Gibbs-White can improve without the ball.
“Also for Morgan, there is a bit of out-of-possession stuff where he can sometimes switch off a little bit.”
Glasner was careful not to frame that as a lack of effort. Instead, he sees it as a habit that can be corrected, giving Gibbs-White better positions when Nottingham Forest win the ball back.
Forest hoping to get more from their star
Oliver Glasner also stressed that this approach isn’t exclusive to Gibbs-White. His staff are looking at how every player can improve based on their individual qualities.
“Morgan will play differently to Dan Ndoye because they are different profiles, but they can benefit from each other.”
That could be important for Nottingham Forest as Glasner begins to put his own ideas into practice. The manager wants more goals and assists from his attacking players, while also ensuring the team doesn’t become exposed when possession changes hands.
Glasner believes the midfielder has two years to push himself back into England contention, with the home Euros providing the motivation.
