Steve Cooper remains positive despite Nottingham Forest’s latest defeat, focusing on improvement instead of the sack.

Steve Cooper, Nottingham Forest boss, is ignoring rumours regarding his future after his team’s loss against Aston Villa, which has placed them in the bottom three. Villa scored two goals in the second half with Bertrand Traore and Ollie Watkins finding the back of the net. This leaves Cooper’s team without a win in nine games and their closing days at the Championship.

Although Cooper had public support from Evangelos Marinakis during the week, it came with a warning that performances and results “must improve immediately.” Manchester United, Liverpool, and Brighton stand as the next three opponents for Cooper; hence, his job could still be under threat.

Asked about his future, Cooper said, “I’m not sure, that’s not something I think about. I think about results and performances, of course, but not in terms of the impact of what people are thinking. We have to believe that we can turn it around because if we stop that, we have no chance.

As tough as it is sometimes after losing a game, we have to go with confidence and try to get the results.”

On the other side of the field, Villa had a different tale to tell. With their sixth win in the last seven games, Villa has moved to the top six, keeping Europa League qualification in their sights for the end of the season. Unai Emery, the boss, says that reaching Europe is the target, but their present position is “not real.”