JUST a few weeks ago, when asked if Andy Reid was challenging for a place in the Nottingham Forest starting line-up, Steve Cotterill's response could hardly have sent out a clearer, starker message.

"I don't know about that," said the manager. "Some players can just have a bigger impact off the bench.

"They are better when they are coming on, not starting games."

Cotterill's intention will not have been to damn the Irishman with faint praise. But that was the end result nonetheless.

It was certainly not a glowing testimony to the player who has cost more than £11m during his career, the majority of which has been played out on the biggest stage, in the Premier League.

But this was just a typical moment of honesty from Cotterill, who had not been convinced of Reid's fitness levels, and is also not prone to glossing over his opinions.

That in itself, however, was something of a vicious circle.

Because, as a peripheral figure, Reid had not had the opportunity to hone his sharpness; to get himself to his peak.

Since his return in the summer, the only cutting edge Reid had found was off the pitch, when he had launched a stinging attack on the club for their failure to back former manager Steve McClaren in the summer transfer window.

Subsequent to McClaren's departure, the only match the Irishman had started under Cotterill was the humbling home defeat against Leeds when, with the Reds already 4-0 down, the midfielder's tired legs carried him into an exhausted, clumsy challenge that earned him a second booking.

If anything, it seemed that the forthcoming January transfer window might be one of concern for different reasons for Reid, with the manager having admitted that players would have to be sacrificed to free up money in the budget.

Given that he had been frozen out of the starting line-up for so long, it was logical to presume that Reid might be among those Cotterill would consider moving on.

Five weeks went by before, at Ipswich on Monday, the former Spurs, Charlton, Sunderland and Blackpool man was given a second chance.

And it was an opportunity Reid took with both hands or, more precisely, with a few accurate sweeps of his left boot.

It was Marcus Tudgay who officially broke Forest's 635 minute goal famine, with a cool, composed finish that belied the nervousness that had begun to seep through the side in front of goal.

But the vision of Reid laid on the goal, sending the ball perfectly into the striker's path for him to fire a precision finish inside the far post.

It was also the Irishman who fed Garath McCleary, before the winger launched into a devastating, defence-splitting run that also culminated in a unerring finish.

And, after Ipswich had pulled a goal back, Reid completed a hat-trick of assists with the best delivery of all, sending a deep, inch-perfect cross between two defenders and perfectly for Tudgay, who produced a conversion to match, flicking a header neatly into the inside of the side netting.

It was the kind of display that emphasised exactly why McClaren had been keen to bring Reid back to the City Ground.

More than that, it was the kind of display that had probably persuaded Spurs that they had to sign Reid, along with Michael Dawson, seven years ago.

It was suggested, on Monday, that Reid had rolled back the years – and he is often referred to as a veteran midfielder.

But many people will be surprised to find he has, in fact, yet to celebrate his 30th birthday.

And, at 29, he had not come to the City Ground to coast to the end of his career, following a frustrating few seasons as a marginalised figure at both Sunderland and Blackpool.

At Portman Road, a remarkable string of injuries left Cotterill almost with a side that picked itself – with Reid included almost out of necessity.

With ten players ruled out through injury, suspension and, in the case of Marlon Harewood, by a lack of international clearance, Cotterill found himself with a list of 12 or 13 available senior players – with the only real decision being over how to forge them into a side.

But that decision proved to be a significant one.

Because, with the 4-2-3-1 formation that Cotterill reverted back to at Ipswich, the manager may also have found a way to make the most not only of Reid's talents, but also the likes of Lewis McGugan and McCleary.

As Reid demonstrated against Leeds, defending is not his strong point.

And, while McCleary's pace and fitness levels allow him to get up and down the flank with admirable efficiency, McGugan's defensive instincts have a habit of going AWOL.

Radi Majewski is another who fits into that category. While the Pole has never really sat comfortably in a central position amid a 4-4-2, he has flourished when given the chance to play off the striker.

Not always through a lack of effort, McGugan, too, lacks the attributes required to perform in central midfield and has often, instead, found himself pushed out to the flanks, where his influence can be lost.

Which is why this formation makes most sense, given the crop of players Forest have at their disposal.

Having Jonathan Greening and Guy Moussi – or George Boateng, who performed admirably at Ipswich – sat just in front of the defence provides Forest with a sense of freedom; with an important safety belt.

All three are perfectly equipped to sit and provide protection, to win the ball and give it simply.

And, beyond that, Forest have a host of players who can slot into the attacking quartet; who can be let of the leash to do what they do best.

Beyond McGugan, Reid, McCleary and Majewski, Paul Anderson, David McGoldrick, Robbie Findley and Ishmael Miller – if he is not sold – are all also players who can fit into a system that allows them to play just off a target man.

And Dexter Blackstock, Tudgay, Miller and McGoldrick are all capable of playing as the lone front man.

The formation allows the freedom to roam; to get into wide positions or to make darting central runs in support of the front-man. It is that fluidity and adaptability, in fact, that makes the system so strong.

That and the fact that, rather than worrying where to accommodate their most dangerous players, it allows Forest to make the most of them. As Reid demonstrated in emphatic fashion.

And, rather than question whether he is ready for a place in the starting line-up, the biggest question Cotterill now faces is whether he can afford to leave Reid out.