If Nottingham Forest want to accomplish any business during the January transfer window, they must act quickly, with deadline day approaching.
Nuno Espirito Santo will be pleased with the composition of his team, especially now that Ibrahim Sangare and Danilo are returning from injury for Saturday’s trip to Brighton.
However, Evangelos Marinakis wants to sign a striker for Forest, and the tale will continue until Monday’s transfer deadline.
Forest are interested in Yoane Wissa as a potential striker, but new reports suggest that Tottenham want to hijack Forest’s deal for Wissa, complicating matters.
To Espirito Santo’s chagrin, Igor Jesus is not interested in joining Forest, despite the allure of the Premier League.
Neither of these players appear to be the Forest owner’s major goal in the final days of the transfer window, with reports indicating that Marinakis feels confident in pursuing his preferred attacker.
Nottingham Forest remain confident in acquiring Matheus Cunha.
Forest’s interest in Matheus Cunha has continued since first reports, despite efforts by his parent club, Wolves, and other Premier League suitors to complicate a move.
Even Wolves’ £70 million price tag for Cunha hasn’t deterred Marinakis from talks, with the latest TEAMtalk story indicating that confidence in the Forest camp remains unshakeable.
The report initially claimed that Aston Villa are increasingly interested in Cunha, stating that: “Villa want a striker to support [Ollie] Watkins, and they believe Cunha would be the perfect candidate for the role, with the 25-year-old having scored 10 goals in 20 Premier League starts for Wolves this season.”
However, the story goes on to add that “despite interest from Chelsea among other clubs, Forest are confident that they will be able to get a deal done for the Wolves forward.”
Although Wolves remain confident in keeping Cunha, Forest’s optimism must stem from somewhere, as a trade for the Brazilian forward has never been off the table.
Marinakis must be concerned about Aston Villa, though, as Unai Emery’s side has a significant edge over Forest if they are serious about the hunt.
Aston Villa can beat Nottingham Forest to Matheus Cunha with one major edge.
Even if Forest is willing to smash their transfer record in order to sign Cunha, it may not be enough to compete with Aston Villa’s latest acquisition.
Villa have just agreed to pay a set £64 million fee for Jhon Duran’s departure to Saudi Arabia, which could easily be used to replace the Colombian with Cunha.
Marinakis’ readiness to pay Forest a record fee to get Cunha to the City Ground is one thing, but Villa’s confidence in what they can give for the Brazilian is something Forest may struggle to match.
Villa has also qualified for the Champions League’s last 16, which was one of the reasons Cunha preferred a move to Arsenal over Forest, complicating negotiations.
With Cunha being Marinakis’ top objective, the hunt will certainly go on until the Wolves man is seen in another side’s uniform but competing with the likes of Villa will be a true battle.
