Aitor Karanka to rotate Nottingham Forest squad for Burton Albion cup tie

The Reds travel to the Pirelli Stadium in the fourth round of the competition knowing a win would see them into the quarter final draw having seen off Bury, Newcastle and Stoke in previous rounds.

But Karanka has warned against complacency and reassured Forest fans that whatever team he selects for the tie will be a competitive one that is good enough to win the match at their near neighbours.

“I will make changes because I have players who have played three games in one week,” said Karanka. “I need to check with the medical department how they are but the 11 players who go to the pitch will be the best players for the game.

“It is important because with the squad we have, it is important for the players who are not playing or who have the chance to play, to show me that they are ready.

“I have said always that I do not have one team for the cup and one for the league, and tomorrow I will put out the best 11. It is true that the more games we have, the better it will be for everybody.”

Nigel Clough’s Burton sit 16th in the League One table following their relegation from the Championship last May. They have seen off Shrewsbury Town, Aston Villa and Burnley already in the Carabao Cup.

“It will be really tough, even tougher than the league games because we are in a good run in the cup but for Burton it will be a very important game,” added Karanka.

“They will want to beat us, for sure. Last season we played against them in the Championship and we know how tough it is against them at their stadium. I am expecting a tougher game than even in the league.

“We need to think about the game tomorrow, as if we think that we are in the following round before we play the game we are making a big mistake.

“We knew how tough it was to beat Bury in the cup; we thought we would win that game easy and we had problems until the last second.

“Against Newcastle and Stoke it was the same and if we go into the game tomorrow thinking we will win easy because they are not good in the league or they are only in League One, we will be making a big mistake.”

A win for Karanka’s side would see Forest into the quarter finals of the competition for the first time since 1993/94.