Jordan Gabriel has no regrets about leaving Nottingham Forest for Championship high-flyers Blackpool in the summer transfer window, telling The Gazette he’s loving life under Neil Critchley at Bloomfield Road.
Forest have been a team transformed since the appointment of Steve Cooper in late September but, despite an impressive turnaround at the City Ground, the two-time European Champions are still grabbing at Blackpool’s coat-tails.
The newly promoted Tangerines have won seven of their past 12 Championship games, a run that’s sparked talk of successive promotions.
And Gabriel, a 23-year-old right-back who joined Blackpool on a permanent deal worth about £700,000 in the summer, has played a major role, starting the club’s past five games.
In fact, Gabriel has made more appearances in the first three months of this season than he managed in six years as a Nottingham Forest player.
Former Nottingham Forest full-back Gabriel loves the Blackpool ‘massive’
“I love it here,” said the one-time Arsenal youngster, who was linked with Sunderland before returning to Blackpool following an impressive loan spell in the north west.
“It was a big decision to make the move but it was just one of those things. I’ve got to dig in and create a future for myself and the team as well. It’s massive.
“It helps having that bond with the fans because it gives me that confidence and belief to express myself on the pitch. It does really help.
“Whether it’s home or away, they are the best fans in the league, 100 per cent. No matter where we go, they always out-sing the other fans. It’s massive for us.”
Nottingham Forest have an exciting young right-back of their own, Djed Spence’s swashbuckling performances offering an indication why his former Middlesbrough manager Neil Warnock compared the 21-year-old to Liverpool star Trent Alexander-Arnold.
Unfortunately for Steve Cooper and co, a Middlesbrough side now under the stewardship of Chris Wilder have a recall clause in Spence’s contract, one that can be exercised as early as January.
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