Nottingham Forest had a low-key transfer deadline day, as Nuno Espirito Santo maintained faith in the core of players who have brought the team to third place in the Premier League.
Forest added Joel Ndala at the eleventh hour. However, there is no evidence to suggest that he will play for the first team, and he may spend his loan period with the B-Team.
The Reds did able to get some players cleared off the decks during the window which proved a bonus. Emmanuel Dennis joined Blackburn on loan for the remainder of the season, while others left throughout the window.
Joe Gardner was sent off in his Lincoln debut on Saturday. Esapa Osong also left, with the striker returning from Rotherham to Cambridge instead.
Lewis O’Brien stars for Swansea City his loan debut.
O’Brien was another player who departed Forest during the summer window, with Swansea outbidding many other clubs to sign the midfielder.
The 26-year-old has been yearning regular football for some time. He spent the first half of the season on loan in the MLS with Los Angeles FC, but the club was unable to make the move permanent.
That paved the way for a number of Championship teams to make their move. Derby wanted O’Brien at one stage, but Forest doing business with the Rams seemed highly unlikely.
On Sunday, he made an excellent debut for Swansea. The Welsh team won 1-0 to earn their first three points of 2025, with O’Brien scoring seven out of ten goals.
Wales Online also reported that he provided ‘encouraging evidence’ of his ability to perform the tasks of a traditional number eight while also bringing box-to-box attributes to the club.
Forest should sell O’Brien this summer.
O’Brien will be dissatisfied with the outcome of his stay at Forest. He made 14 appearances in the first half of 2022/23 but was left out of the 25-man squad for the second half of the season.
As a result, he’s been forced into a succession of loan periods, with clubs unable to pay the £10 million Forest paid for him or sanction his City Ground salary.
The summer must be the time when Forest cuts their losses. Loaning him out makes little sense for anyone, and ideally a successful few months with Swansea will motivate them to make a buy.
