The night before Nottingham Forest prevailed against Midtjylland, going the distance in central Denmark to tee up a first European quarter-final 30 years to the day since their last, Ryan Yates was doing a spot of homework. The Forest club captain found himself flicking through the Champions League offering at the team hotel in Silkeborg, half an hour east of Herning, but naturally lingered on Tottenham’s rematch with Atlético Madrid. A trip to Spurs, of course, is next and, like Forest, they find themselves in a perilous predicament near the bottom of the Premier League.

Vítor Pereira has done whatever the opposite of dressing up Sunday’s meeting as just another game is, stressing with eight games to go the Premier League must come first, even if they have rekindled fading hopes of European glory. It has been an unexpectedly satisfying week for both sides, Forest overturning a first-leg deficit to advance, and Spurs building on an encouraging display, and result, at Liverpool by registering a welcome first win under Igor Tudor, whose side exited on aggregate.

Pereira also observed the green shoots at Spurs but insists his...