'Will feel benefits down the line' - Hodge on warm-weather training
Former Forest midfielder Steve Hodge believes Nuno Espirito Santo and his players will "feel the benefits down the line" from their mid-season warm-weather training trip to Dubai.Hodge was part of regular mid-season trips while playing for Forest in the 1980s under Brian Clough but joked on the latest episode of Shut Up and Show More Football: "We didn't see a football pitch - we just saw a bar!".Nuno said the trip helped develop a "tight bond" between his squad as they prepare for a crucial stage of the season in their bid to qualify for European football."The players have been around Nottingham, the City Ground, and have been travelling on coaches to games for the past seven, eight months," Hodge told BBC Radio Nottingham."There is a monotony about it. It's a great life but there is that sameness every trip, on the same bus with the same routine so it's good to get out in the sunshine. "We haven't seen the sun here for a few months so everyone wants to get in that and feel that on your back and get in the swimming pool. You lose that mental pressure of having to perform and be at it every game. "As great as we have been this season and how much the players have loved it, there is still pressure and that will ramp up now we're in that top four or five and there is a chance for Europe. "You do feel the benefits down the line - when the going gets tough you still feel pretty fresh. Mentally, you just feel you have more to give as the season progresses. "It always worked for us. We loved it. The only conversation we had after getting knocked out of the FA Cup early was knowing we'd be in Cala Millor in 48 hours. "It was not quite Dubai - the guys go out there, they're training every day and they're super fit. We didn't see a football pitch - we just saw a bar!"Listen to the full episode on BBC Sounds
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