Tendayi Darikwa and Adlene Guedioura are on the eve of playing in the African Cup of Nations for Zimbabwe and Algeria respectively.

It means the pair could miss a decent chuck of pre-season with Nottingham Forest.

That could hurt their chances of getting in the team come the start of next season, but it's a chance that is too good to miss. It might do them good.

You can come back, rest a bit and then you're ready to go with plenty of fitness in your legs.

They won't need a full pre-season so it's a situation that can be managed.

I played in the European Championships in Italy in 1980. I only played the one game out of three, but that was against the home nation.

The atmosphere was incredible. It's an honour to be able to play in tournaments like that.

That's what you want to reach in your career. Playing for your country is the pinnacle of your career.

It certainly was when I was playing and I would like to think that is still the case now.