This article is part of Football FanCast's Pundit View series, which provides opinion and analysis on recent quotes from journalists, pundits, players and managers...

Going into the international break on a high.

Nottingham Forest players deserve a little bit of a break after their hard work during the past few weeks, particularly after putting an end to their losing streak towards the end of October. And former player Kenny Burns believes that a change of scenery could be just what the doctor ordered when it comes to recovering from their latest batch of fixtures.

What’s he said?

Speaking to Nottinghamshire Live after the victory over Derby County, Burns said that the Forest players deserved to have a bit of a break from their usual routine and how it could prove crucial to them going forward:

“The weather over here is rubbish, it's cold, wet and miserable. Go and get some nice sunshine while you can because it’ll be a long slog from when they return for the game at Bristol City, until international breaks return in March - and they'll need to be ready for it, unlike the last break for internationals. Once they’re back, it’s imperative Lamouchi and his players focus properly on Bristol City at Ashton Gate.”

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Time to see if he’s learned what to do

It’s a rare thing at FFC, but Burns is right on the money here when he talks about focusing properly on Bristol City.

The game at Ashton Gate will be a pretty important test for Lamouchi to see if he has learned his lessons from before, and that’s what this season is all about. Learning, adapting and implementing.

Forest have had two really big shocks when it has come to the international breaks this season, one of them good, the other one terrible. They beat Swansea City back in September despite being dominated in terms of possession and then came crashing down to earth with the loss to Wigan Athletic in the latest one.

The game against Bristol City when they come back from this upcoming break, whilst possibly too early to call it a ‘six-pointer’ in terms of the promotion hunt, certainly is going to act as an important benchmark going forward.

If Lamouchi doesn’t get things right, it could lead to them playing catch up for the rest of the season, and that’s when the pressure will really start to have an effect on the team. So what better way to put those fears to bed than by getting off on the right foot when the teams reconvene.