Vitor Pereira was cruelly dismissed by Nottingham Forest at the end of last season after leading the Reds to survival and a Europa League semi-final.

The lure of getting Oliver Glasner in as head coach proved too much for the Reds’ owner, Evangelos Marinakis, and Pereira was sent packing after his short-term contract came to an end.

Now, months on from his City Ground departure, Pereira has shared what he loved about Gibbs-White when he managed him for a short time at Forest.

Vitor Pereira raves about Morgan Gibbs-White

The number 10 is very much the driving force in the Forest dressing room, and when he wears the captain’s armband, he’s impeccable as a leader of the team.

Gibbs-White was in fine form last season, and ultimately, the team now need him to start weighing in with goals and assists to revive the team’s form and climb the Premier League table.

Pereira was very surprised that Gibbs-White didn’t make the England squad for the World Cup, and he’s now told The Athletic what the number 10 thrives on at Forest.

He said: “Believing in his qualities, giving him confidence, responsibility, and good communication. When you start to create good communication between you and the players, they will be themselves.

“As a top player – not only as a player but as a person – as a leader, he likes the responsibility, he takes the responsibility, and this is the kind of player that is important to have on your side when the fight is on.”

Forest now need Gibbs-White to showcase his leadership responsibilities this weekend against Manchester City, with the Reds in desperate need of points.

Being in the bottom three and with one win from nine games isn’t fun and for Glasner’s sake he needs to make sure his players can put in a big performance before the international break.