Steve Cotterill would have left the Ricoh Arena with plenty of food for thought after seeing his new side make a bright start before fading away dramatically as the struggling Sky Blues ground out a 1-0 win.
Rob Kelly took charge of the Reds ahead of Cotterill's official appointment on Monday and admitted afterwards that the lack of confidence in his players was clear to see.
Lee Camp had already kept Forest on level terms with a superb save before he had to pick Lukas Jutkiewicz's header out of the net just seconds later.
The home side looked the more likely after that to add to their lead rather than concede an equaliser although the Reds were slightly brighter after a double change from Kelly.