Nottingham Forest fought tooth and nail to land a goalkeeper in the January transfer window and ended up getting Matz Sels over the line. However, a top, top stopper was on the City Ground radar for a little while.
Sels has done a decent job since signing for Forest. He’s made waves with Belgium since coming to the City Ground, earning praise from the national media for his performances.
Matt Turner and Odysseas Vlachodimos were both signed in the summer transfer window – but neither goalkeeper has really hit the mark at Forest.
It seemed for a while after Nuno Espirito Santo came to the club that he would stick with the custodians that he had at his disposal.
Instead, he opted to sign Sels who joined Forest from Strasbourg for a very reasonable fee of £5 million.
Things might have been very different, however, with Forest showing an interest in a world-class goalkeeper on a free transfer!
- READ MORE:Who is Matz Sels?
Nottingham Forest were interested in David de Gea
This comes from The Telegraph who claim that Forest did show an interest in signing the former Manchester United stopper in January.
The player has been without a club since being allowed to leave Old Trafford on a free transfer last summer.
His agent is Jorge Mendes – the man who represents Nuno Espirito Santo – and questions were asked by Forest about the goalkeeper.
However, it’s claimed by reputable transfer guru Mike McGrath in the piece that nothing ever came close to being finalised – which is hardly surprising.
De Gea broke records at Manchester United, overtaking Peter Schmeichel as the club’s best-ever goalkeeper in terms of clean sheets.
He also won a Premier League title during the 2012/13 campaign and ultimately it’s a mystery that he doesn’t have a club.
Schmeichel has raved about De Gea in the past, calling him‘unbelievable’ and surely he will get hooked up with a club in the summer.
Forest must get goalkeeper recruitment right this summer
It promises to be another summer of uncertainty in the transfer market when it comes to goalkeeper recruitment.
Players will likely need to leave in order for Forest to get a new one over the line, although the Reds have been linked with Caoimhin Kelleher.
Forest have to make sure they get it right this time. Turner and Vlachodimos have been horrendous additions and that simply won’t do next season.
Sels will still be around next season and he’s earning the right to fight for the number one spot during 2024/25.
However, a younger goalkeeper will likely be sought to compete with him and that means De Gea is unlikely to be coming back into the thoughts of Forest.
One way or another, the club just has to get it right between the posts this time and signing another mediocre goalkeeper isn’t an option.
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