Thomas Frank mentioned that Djed Spence from Tottenham knows his reaction at Nottingham Forest didn't look great, which wasn't good, and hopes he'll learn from it.

Spence, who's 25, seemed confused when he was taken off during the 3-0 defeat at the City Ground. This is the second time this season the player has made headlines because of how he reacted to Spurs boss Frank.

Micky van de Ven and Spence seemed to ignore Frank's instructions to clap for the home fans after a 1-0 loss to Chelsea on Nov. 1. The two apologised. The ex-Brentford head coach suggested this can't happen again.

I talked to him. He wasn't happy because he thought he was subbed off because of an injury, but that wasn't it, or that we thought he had one, Frank said.

I guess he's been talked about twice now, which isn't ideal since we have to spend time on it here in the press conference. It's better if that doesn't happen.

These are two times when he knows it didn't look good, and we're talking about young guys here.

Is he 24 or 25? There's a lot of focus and pressure, and sometimes you mess up, but you learn from it. You should learn and do better next time.

Spence should start when Liverpool visits Tottenham on Saturday, but Brennan Johnson might be on the bench again.

Johnson not playing much has led to rumours about a January move. Even though Frank seemed to suggest he wants to keep last season's top scorer, the player from Wales hasn't been used as a substitute in two of the last four league games.

When asked if he wants Johnson to stay, Frank replied, 'Yeah, I think we will be playing often, so it's good to have enough players.'

I'm happy with Brennan in general. He practised well [Friday]. Before, we said that he's had some good games on the right, and [Mohammed] Kudus came in, so there's more competition there. It's not that he can't play on the left.

I'm happy with Brennan. I'm happy with everyone on the team. It's just that I can only play 11, sadly.

Sean Dyche says his Nottingham Forest team picks won't be because of any clause in Douglas Luiz’s loan deal.

Luiz is spending the season at the City Ground on loan from Juventus. His deal has a condition where Forest would have to sign him for good in the summer, likely based on how many games he plays.

Right now, it doesn't look like Forest will hit that mark. Reports from Italy say Luiz needs to play at least 45 minutes in 15 Premier League games to trigger it. Club bosses are watching the situation, but Dyche is clear that he's not paying much attention to it. He'll keep picking Luiz when he thinks it's the right move for the team.

“Totally. I can manage the team how I want. The bosses have made that clear, especially when it comes to picking the team,” Dyche said before Monday’s game at Fulham.

“The contracts don't matter to me. Other people handle that.

“They let me do my job. We talk about the big stuff – players who might come or go, that kind of thing.

“I don’t need to know all the small print in the contracts. They let me focus on picking the players I think should be playing.”

Luiz has only started four games and come off the bench once for Forest in the Premier League. A hamstring injury has slowed him down, and he's still working to get back in shape. The goal is for him to play as well as he did when he was at Aston Villa.

The 27-year-old was great in the West Midlands. But his big move to Juve in 2024 didn’t go as planned. Still, there’s no argument about how good he is.

With Ibrahim Sangare away on international duty at the Africa Cup of Nations and Ryan Yates out injured, Forest doesn't have many players in the middle of the pitch. Sangare has been starting a lot recently, so maybe Luiz will get a chance to play more now.

“It depends on him as much as us,” Dyche said about Luiz getting back to his best. “He knows that.

“He’s been around for a while and knows what he needs to do to play well. He is a very good player. We've all seen it.

“He seems to be enjoying his time here now. Hopefully, that continues.

“He was unlucky to get injured when we first got here. But he is talented.

“He’s getting used to how we do things, even though he's been out for a bit. He says he’s enjoying it here.

“He is a good player, and we want him to play when he’s ready. But we need to make sure he's in good shape. He's not quite there yet, but he's getting closer.”