McGregor had a unique background in the Forest team, indeed in football as the lead singer of Britpop band Merc, and he told BBC Radio Nottingham's Shut Up And Show More Football podcast this helped him integrate.

"Going into that dressing room as a 19-year-old, there were big players in there, England captains and big characters," he said. "You couldn't be shy and retiring - you had to go in there with something.

"Forest were finishing third in the table, expected to beat teams like Manchester United and were a really special side. I had to have something in my bag."

The Britpop music scene exploded in the mid-1990s, at the time McGregor was forging his way at Forest, with the likes of the Spice Girls, Blur and Oasis making a huge impact.

"Culturally it was all connected and coming together," he added. "There was a big buzz around music and football and I embodied that to some degree."

His band famously played a gig at Rock City and he told of how he had to justify his musical exploits to manager Frank Clark.

"Frank was super supportive, as long as I was coming to training sessions and not getting drunk," said McGregor.

"I did have to sit down and tell him, though, that half the lads were out at Black Orchid getting smashed while I was in a rehearsal room.

"Football came first - I just happened to have a band!"