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Nottingham Forest boss Sean Dyche has been speaking to the media before Friday's FA Cup third-round tie against Wrexham at Stok Cae Ras (kick-off 19:30 GMT).
Here are the key lines from his news conference:
- Arnaud Kalimuendo has reportedly been linked with a loan move to Eintracht Frankfurt this January transfer window and Dyche believes the deal for the striker is a “very good one”. He said: “It was made clear when I got here about the trading model and the nature of the club so we’re waiting on that situation. We’re obviously into other situations, I hope that’s apparent because I’ve made it clear, and the owners made it clear back then, that they support the situation. We need the right players at the right time and the club felt the next deal with him is a very good one for the club so they’re looking at that one.”
- On any possible incomings: "You can be as optimistic as you want until the pen's on the paper and it's done – but, yeah, there's certainly ongoing conversations of situations, that's for sure. The club have been very open with me and my staff – I don't know how it's been previously but I've spoken to them about what we think."
- On moving seven points away from the relegation zone after victory over West Ham: “We’ve done a lot of work since we got here. We were two points in it [relegation] and now we’re seven points out of it, so it’s a pretty big shift over the games we’ve had. Nine points out of the past eight games doesn’t seem a lot, but when you look at the actual table and the teams in that period, it’s hard to get points in the Premier League. So to turn that gap around has been pleasing.”
- Forest disagreed with some refereeing decisions in the defeat by Manchester City in December and requested the VAR audio from the Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL). Dyche thinks the matter has since been resolved: “We’re only looking for a level playing field. It was very fair of them to look at it and I’ve had an open conversation with the club and Howard Webb [chief refereeing officer] about it and everyone’s decided the right things pretty fairly. There’s no win or lose in the moments, just fairness. In any given game we’re looking for consistency in the refereeing and in the decisions. It’s a fair outcome but it doesn’t change what happened because we might have got a point here or there – but it means in the future, these things can help in the wider picture.”
- He continued: "Despite popular belief, I am a big fan of referees. It's a very difficult job and, as I've said, I don't know why they have to talk to everyone and all that – just let them get on with refereeing and do their job."
- On facing Wrexham: "I know [Phil] Parkinson – what a job he's done. I think it's over 1,000 games now, which is incredible in itself. A relatively young manager at 58. I've seen his career from afar for a long time now. I've played against him, I've seen his teams have great success, and he's been more or less successful everywhere he's been. He's certainly done a brilliant job there – in positive circumstances but it's still quite interesting circumstances with a lot of noise off the pitch. He just keeps under the radar and keeps his team going."
- He added: "They've had some wins on the trot now – I think it's four – so they're a good outfit and we've got to be ready for it. It's a tough industry but you've got to learn to love the toughness and some of the hard takes – and also the good stuff when it comes your way. There's a good feeling around the camp after going down to West Ham and winning that.”
Listen to Friday’s match coverage from 19:30 GMT on BBC Radio 5 Live and BBC Sounds
How to follow all FA Cup action on the BBC this weekend
