NOTTINGHAM FOREST HANDED GOLDEN CHANCE TO SIGN 19-GOAL STRIKER

Sydney van Hooijdonk is not part of Bologna’s pre-season plans with the Serie A outfit opening the door to a summer move to Premier League outfit Nottingham Forest. 

If Van Hooijdonk Jr ends up following in his father’s footsteps at the City Ground, it’s safe to say Nottingham Forest fans will be hoping he emulates Pierre’s goalscoring ability, while staying clear of the sort of controversy which forever tainted the Dutchman’s Garibaldi legacy.

According to The Athletic’s uber-reliable David Ornstein, Forest scouted 23-year-old Sydney van Hooijdonk last season.

The Bologna-owned poacher enjoyed a superb campaign on loan at Heerenveen. A bonafide penalty-box presence renowned for his instinctive, often one-touch finishing, Van Hooijdonk scored 19 goals in 39 games as Heerenveen narrowly missed out on European football.

And while the former NAC Breda youngster has admitted that he would be open to kick-starting his Bologna career, it appears that the Rossoblu have other ideas.

Tuttomercatoweb report that Van Hooijdonk is not part of manager Thiago Motta’s plans. What’s more, Bologna have told the burly Dutchman not to bother turning up to pre-season on Tuesday with the likes of former West Ham ace Marko Arnautovic and one-time Bayern Munich youngster Joshua Zirkzee ahead of him in Motta’s pecking order.

“It will be interesting to see. I don’t know what’s going to happen,” Van Hooijdonk recently told Veronica Inside. “It will be a long summer, I think.

“I am now 23, and do not want to be loaned out for another year. I don’t know if it is financially feasible for Heerenveen to buy me. It was also agreed in advance; either I will play (at Bologna), or I will be sold. If I don’t play there, I think it’s also a good time to be sold.

“I have had a good season. I have to say that I am open to everything. It just depends on the story and what the plan is with me. I am open to anything.”

At Nottingham Forest, Van Hooijdonk would face competition from Taiwo Awoniyi, who’s goals against the likes of Chelsea and Southampton were integral to Steve Cooper’s side avoiding the drop.

The Athletic, meanwhile, believe that £15 million signing Chris Wood may already be fighting for his City Ground future. READ MORE

Bruno Lage was seemingly ready to use him more.

But Gibbs-White departed, with Wolves accepting an offer from Forest.

That offer was £25 million up front, and add-ons could one day take it to £42.5 million. It is thought though that some of the add-ons are unrealistic.

Gibbs-White’s exit divided supporters at the time, and Edwards reckons Wolves should have done more to keep the 23-year-old.

Dave Edwards says Wolves should have done more to keep Morgan Gibbs-White

It was thought that Wolves would be looking to build around Gibbs-White.

And the early indications were that Lage was ready to put his trust in the star.

In the end though, the offer from Forest was too good for Wolves to turn down.

But Edwards has suggested that Wolves perhaps should have done that and kept the player.

Fearing Max Kilman could depart in a similar manner, Edwards said in his latest Express & Star column: “You could say it was a great deal, but you can see his performances for Nottingham Forest and England U21s.

“I know he can be frustrating, hot-headed and he has a little bit of arrogance that winds fans up, but when he’s one of your own playing for your team, you want that.

“Wolves should have worked a bit harder to keep him and he definitely did not play enough games for the club. His replacement in Goncalo Guedes didn’t work, and I think Matheus Cunha is a terrific player but I would say there were more benefits keeping Morgan instead.”

Edwards talked about Wolves missing Gibbs-White in another column he wrote earlier this year.

Morgan Gibbs-White has been annoyingly good since leaving Wolves

A lot of Wolves supporters do not like Gibbs-White these days, which is understandable given the way he behaved during the Carabao Cup match between the two sides.

But sadly there is no getting away from the fact that Gibbs-White did really well in his first season with Forest.

He was one of their best players, and ultimately helped them beat the drop.

That said, Wolves were still right to do business with Forest.

At the time, their offer was just too good for Wolves to be turned down.

It is just a shame that the money from that sale was not invested well.