With just one month until the 2024/25 Premier League season begins, Nottingham Forest are expected to make their first offer to sign their fifth signing of the summer.
Nottingham Forest transfer news
It’s been a very productive summer for those at City Ground, who followed profit and sustainability standards by selling Orel Mangala and Moussa Niakhate to Lyon while welcoming four new faces of their own. Elliot Anderson, Marko Stamenic, Carlos Miguel, and Eric da Silva Moreira have all come to give Nuno Espirito Santo an early help in his quest for Premier League survival next season.
Those in the Midlands are unlikely to be done with arrivals, either. Reports have since linked them with Florentino Luis in an effort to strengthen their midfield options with Anderson’s arrival. Forest are clearly backing Espirito Santo, who could even be awarded a Champions League ace before the summer transfer window closes.
According to Calcio Mercato, Nottingham Forest will make their first bid to capture Alexis Saelemaekers from AC Milan, alongside Ipswich Town and Leicester City. The Italian club is allegedly open to selling the winger and values him at €10m-15m (£8m-£13m), which might lead to Saelemaekers joining the Premier League.
Signing a player of AC Milan’s caliber from a Champions League League club would make a statement for Forest, especially if they can beat relegation rivals Leicester and Ipswich to Saelemaekers’ signature in the next month or so. Following a successful loan spell at Bologna last season, the Milan player could benefit from a permanent move away from the San Siro this summer.
“Superb” Saelemaekers needs permanent move
Saelemaekers, who appears to be out of Milan’s plans for the summer, needs to leave more than most in Italy, and Nottingham Forest are apparently prepared to provide him just that. Those in the Midlands have already seen Callum Hudson-Odoi have renewed stints at the City Ground, and the Belgian might follow in the winger’s footsteps if he completes a summer transfer. He wouldn’t be without competition, though, after Anthony Elanga’s impressive debut season.
For Nuno, having two very different wingers in Saelemaekers and Elanga would only increase his team’s prospects of defying the odds and overcoming the challenges of a relegation battle next season. Saelemaekers, who is more solid and better off the ball than the more creative Elanga, can provide the former Wolverhampton Wanderers manager with a disciplined option against top-six opponents in games where Forest may decide to stay deep.
The Milan winger, described as “superb” by Football Talent Scout’s Jacek Kulig, faces a difficult decision this summer, with many Premier League clubs apparently interested in signing him.