Vitor Pereira has already restored spirit and confidence at Nottingham Forest, says defender Murillo.
The Brazilian centre-back believes the appointment of Pereira — Forest’s fourth manager of a chaotic season — already feels like a reason for optimism.
Murillo conceded that there had been “some problems” for the players under both Ange Postecoglou and Sean Dyche — but that there was already a sense in the dressing room that the togetherness they had enjoyed under Nuno Espirito Santo is returning.
There was a dramatic improvement on the pitch as Pereira’s first game in charge saw Forest register an emphatic 3-0 win over Fenerbahce in the first leg of their Europa League play-off in Istanbul.
“The main point is the gaffer. The gaffer passed this confidence to us. I think the winning spirit we had last season has come back. It’s early to say this but I think it is the light at the end of the tunnel,” said Murillo.
Murillo opened the scoring for Forest on Thursday (Yasin Akgul/AFP via Getty Images)
“Everyone knows we have a good team, good attack, young players, we had a lot of things to improve and I think with Vitor we’re going to make a good job and go back towards the top of the table.
“The most important thing is we’ve got his idea. Before the game he had everybody together, all the players, all the staff, all the physios. That is the most important thing. It makes the team stronger. I know it is just the beginning but I think he will do a great job.”
Forest face a more difficult challenge on Sunday, when Liverpool visit the City Ground in the Premier League, with Pereira’s side desperate for points to extend the current three-point buffer between them and the bottom three.
“We had some problems with the last gaffers but now we have to keep looking forward and grab (Pereira’s) idea so that we can come back towards the top again,” said Murillo.
The 23-year-old conceded it has been a challenging season, with Nuno sacked in November, with his replacement, Postecoglou, lasting only 39 days. Dyche was sacked last week following a 0-0 draw with Wolves.
“We know how difficult it is, because four managers, four different ideas,” he said. “But now Vitor can give his ideas to overcome the bad moment that we were going through. Believing in him is important.”