Nottingham Forest are at the start of a brand-new era, but Evangelos Marinakis will hope that Oliver Glasner will stick around for longer than his recent predecessors.
After a remarkable rise in the Premier League, Forest proved the architects of their own decline last season, though they did stabilise under Vitor Pereira’s short-spanning wing, finishing comparatively comfortably in 16th place.
The early readings are promising. Forest had gone four pre-season matches unbeaten before a bruising 4-1 defeat by the hand of Sporting CP, but such a loss will have told Glasner much of his troops, and it’s clear that he needs to find more control from the heart of the field following Elliot Anderson’s £116m sale to Manchester City.
Glasner favourite Xaver Schagler has been signed already, while Manchester City’s Tijjanni Reijnders is on Marinakis’ radar. However, Tottenham Hotspur’s Lucas Bergvall could be the one to go for.
Why Forest have made Lucas Bergvall a top target
Bergvall, 20, has had a rough ride at Tottenham. That said, he has learned much over the past 18 months, winning the Europa League before becoming embroiled in a shock relegation dogfight.
Spurs’ struggles have been well-documented, and it’s fair to say that north London has hardly been a hothouse for the growth of up-and-coming midfielders such as this one.
It’s no surprise that Bergvall is looking for a change of scenery, open to leaving Tottenham and joining a Premier League outfit such as Forest.
The £60m-rated Sweden international is very much on Forest’s radar, with offers already knocked back from Glasner’s side and Newcastle United too. Bids fell in the region of £43m, and Spurs weren’t having it.
Bergvall is talented, but he’s still developing, and Nottingham Forest may have to play something of a waiting game before landing a fully-fledged midfielder to pull strings from the heart of Glasner’s midfield.
Reijnders is the more experienced man, but Forest could actually pull off an even better signing before the start of the new Premier League season.
How Forest can sign a Bergvall upgrade this summer
Bergvall might be talented, but he is a work in progress. He only started 11 times in the Premier League last season, and perhaps still needs to develop his physicality and sharpen the finer points of his skillset.
According to FootMercato, Nottingham Forest are expected to lodge an ‘official’ bid to sign Lamine Camara, with the AS Monaco midfielder certainly more polished and experienced than Bergvall.
Crystal Palace have already made an approach, and Liverpool and Manchester United lurk in the background. Monaco aren’t thrilled about possibly losing the Senegal international, but would do business for around €50m (£43m).
Still only 22 years old, there’s no question that Camara plays with a rare kind of maturity. He is a “complete midfielder”, according to analyst Ben Mattinson, a defensive dog of a dueller with a jaw-dropping athletic engine.
|
League Form (2025/26) |
||
|---|---|---|
|
Stats (* per 90) |
Camara |
Bergvall |
|
Matches (starts) |
24 (22) |
23 (11) |
|
Goals + Assists |
3 + 4 |
1 + 3 |
|
Touches* |
70.9 |
21.5 |
|
Accurate passes* |
43.5 (86%) |
10.8 (82%) |
|
Big chances created |
8 |
0 |
|
Key passes* |
1.5 |
0.2 |
|
Succ. dribbles* |
0.7 |
0.7 |
|
Ball recoveries* |
6.6 |
1.7 |
|
Def. contributions* |
4.6 |
1.7 |
|
Duels won* |
5.6 (56%) |
2.1 (44%) |
Bergvall has world-class potential, for sure, but he’s far from reaching that platform, and you have to question whether Forest have the luxury of easing him up to that standard over the next year, or two, or three.
Glasner’s transitional system will see the Tricky Trees struggle for dominance on the ball. That’s okay. Crystal Palace did just fine without the adoption of a ball-playing system over the past several seasons.
Camara is a creative midfielder, but he also attacks opponents with an aggression that cannot be taught. He can be a ball-winning machine when he wants to, and through that, would trump Bergvall’s impact in the Premier League next year.
Nottingham Forest are going to need to perfect the fine margins over the coming year, should they hope to kick on under Glasner’s management.
The Austrian coach is a perfectionist, and by signing an all-round phenomenon of a midfielder in Camara, would surely have the perfect piece to realise his title-winning ambitions.
