After picking up their first win of the season against Aston Villa last time out, Nottingham Forest are looking to match their ambitions away from the pitch with those on it.
Evangelos Marinakis already welcomed a European winner in the form of Oliver Glasner in the summer, before also backing his new manager with big-money signings such as Ousmane Diomande and club-record arrival Liam Delap. The Greek owner even reunited Glasner with Daniel Munoz.
|
Nationality |
Previous Club |
Fee |
|
|---|---|---|---|
|
Liam Delap |
England |
Chelsea |
£50m |
|
Ousmane Diomande |
Ivory Coast |
Sporting CP |
£34m |
|
Daniel Munoz |
Colombia |
Crystal Palace |
£22m |
|
Gustavo Sa |
Portugal |
Famalicao |
£17m |
|
Steven Benda |
Germany |
Fulham |
Free |
|
Xaver Schlager |
Austria |
RB Leipzig |
Free |
So now that the first victory has arrived, the only way, in theory, is up. Between now and January, Forest have the chance to move beyond any mid-table boredom and into European contention under a manager who knows how to do exactly that.
Delighted with his first Premier League win as Forest boss, Glasner told reporters admitted that the credit belongs to his players rather than him and his coaching staff.
“Every win is great, but I did not play one second today. The players deserve all the credit, because they did so well. Our fans deserve the credit, because they supported us. Now we will go home and have a lovely Saturday evening.”
Perhaps Marinakis may just take some of the credit for how Forest recruited those very players too, and that’s not to say the spending is ending anytime soon.
When January does arrive and Forest are potentially competing amongst the top half, they could splash the cash once more to get one over on several rivals.
Nottingham Forest join race to sign Geny Catamo
As reported by TeamTalk, Nottingham Forest are now plotting a move to sign Geny Catamo, which would see them hijack Sunderland’s top summer target.
The Black Cats were keen on a move in the summer and even held talks with Sporting regarding the winger. If anyone looked destined to sign Catamo, it was them. Their failure has only attracted more interest ever since, however, and they now face a battle to sign their attacking target, who has a €60m (£51m) release clause.
Alongside those in Wearside and those at Nottingham Forest, Aston Villa, Brighton, Brentford and Newcastle United are also tracking the 25-year-old – sparking an all-Premier League battle.
It’s no surprise that Catamo is attracting such interest, either. He has managed five goal involvements in seven games so far this season and is on course to beat last season’s total of 13. Make no mistake, this is a player who is only going to get better.
He may suit Glasner’s system more than most, too. Catamo can play both as a winger and as a wing-back. If the Austrian is already thinking about long-term replacements for 30-year-old Munoz, then the Sporting star should be a top candidate.
