Steve Cooper throws down Leeds United gauntlet and reveals Nottingham Forest's added motivation

Forest have not won since recording a 1-0 victory at home to Leeds on February 5, after which a haul of just three points from a last possible 21 has left Cooper’s side in 15th place and just one point clear of the drop zone.

Cooper, though, says his side must now back themselves for Tuesday night’s clash at fourth-bottom Leeds, despite having netted just four goals on their travels all season which have yielded just one away win via January’s 1-0 success at Southampton.

Forest climbed back above Leeds with Saturday’s 1-1 draw at home to Wolves, a result which Cooper said left his side frustrated and now provides “added motivation” to win Tuesday night’s huge clash at Elland Road.

"They are all going to be big now, from now until the end of the season,” said Cooper at his pre-match press conference. "Last Saturday was big, the game after tomorrow will be big and so on.

"But tomorrow is a great game to look forward to. We understand the timing of the season and league positions and all the context it adds around the importance of the game and being away from home but we've really got to relish the challenge.

"We've got to really back ourselves, believe in ourselves more than ever. We were frustrated with only picking up the draw on the weekend and I think that's added to the motivation, as well. So we're really committed and focused to getting the right result tomorrow."

Assessing Forest’s away form, Cooper admitted: “There will be a lot of negative things said about our away form and we have to accept those comments. We can’t hide away from that. We have to own it and try and do something about it. We’re still of that mindset, we can still do something about it and that’s our intention.

"It will be a great game under the lights at Elland Road and it's a great occasion to go and try and win a match. We can't ignore the away form. We need to take responsibility to put it right and that only starts with the next game."