Sheffield Wednesday boss Steve Bruce wary of opposition strike force ahead of Nottingham Forest test

Bruce knows Grabban well, having worked with him at Aston Villa last season. Grabban, previously of Rotherham United, notched eight goals during a loan spell at Villa Park last term. He led the line in their Championship play-off final defeat to Fulham.

The 31-year-old netted 20 goals in two loans stints at Sunderland and Villa, prompting Forest to splash out £6m to sign him on a permanent basis from Bournemouth last summer.

Forest's faith has been rewarded as Grabban has again excelled in second-tier, hitting 17 goals in 35 outings during the 2018/19 campaign.

"We had him at Aston Villa last year and he did excellent for us," Bruce told The Star. "He is a very, very good player."

Grabban scored in Saturday's loss away to relegation-threatened Rotherham.

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Forest are currently ninth in the table, five points shy of the top-six.

But Martin O'Neill's side have gone 11 matches without a win on the road. Their last victory away from the City Ground came back in November when they triumphed 2-0 at Hull City.

Bruce added: "They have got some good players all throughout their squad and in Martin (O'Neill) they have got a big, experienced manager so it will be a tough test."

The Wednesday manager has called on his players to beat Forest and reignite their slim play-off charge following Saturday's painful defeat to Aston Villa.

"We have still got a chance," said Bruce. "We have some big games to play.

"The Championship is totally ludicrous.

"If we had won against Villa, we would have given ourselves a great chance. We did everything we possibly could but it wasn't meant to be."