Ipswich boss Gary O'Neil has been speaking to the media before Friday's Premier League game against Nottingham Forest at Portman Road (kick-off 20:00 BST).

Here are the key lines from his news conference:

• Sasa Lukic is still sidelined with a groin injury. The midfielder, who was rested as a precaution against Manchester City, should "definitely be back with the squad for a decent part of next week" before the trip to Hull City. O'Neil explained: "We could have tried to push minutes on him this weekend but it would have carried a risk. We are hopeful he will be fully fit and ready to go next weekend."

• On whether leaving Etihad Stadium with a feeling of disappointment is a good sign for a promoted side: "Nobody is getting carried away. It was a decent effort against a good side. It didn't give us any points but it did give us some belief that we can be competitive. We are seven games in with nine points on the board, but there is a lot of work ahead of us."

• On whether any pressure has turned into excitement after racking up nine points in seven games: "We are under pressure every week - that's the nature of football. I hear pressure used as a negative term but I believe it is a privilege to be responsible for ensuring we finish as high up the Premier League table as we can."

• The squad's culture and togetherness is the best he has ever been around and he feels it gives them "a fighting chance" when the "tactical or technical stuff" isn't quite working.

• All of the summer additions have done a "good job" of dealing with the "robust test" of the Premier League so far this season. He highlighted that Emersonn is "yet to play 90 minutes but working hard with the fitness coaches", while Abdoul Ouattara is "still getting used to the speed and physicality".

• Exequiel Palacios, who signed from Bayer Leverkusen for an undisclosed fee, has lived up to O'Neil's expectations so far. He added: "I knew he was going to be good, but he is exceptional. He is going to be a big player for us this season. We just need to make sure we use him correctly."

• Nottingham Forest will pose a "very different but equally difficult test". He added: "They have performed better than their points tally would suggest. They have lost games on scorelines, but if it was a boxing match you definitely wouldn't have had them losing some of those games."

• Oliver Glasner's style is "incredibly difficult" to play against. The Austrian looks to play "low-risk, direct and transitional" football, defending in a "pretty low block with a back five that can jump pretty aggressively".

• When it was pointed out that O'Neil has never lost to Nottingham Forest in his managerial career, he jokingly cited "luck" as the reason.