Nottingham Forest: Cooper could land £26m Sangare alternative.
- Nottingham Forest have positioned themselves to beat Liverpool & PSG to one of their targets. .Described as an ‘octopus’ the player would be a bargain at a potential £26m.
- He’d be a dream alternative to fellow target, Ibrahim Sangare.
Nottingham Forest will be looking to establish themselves as a competitive Premier League side during their second season in the top flight, and Steve Cooper has made it clear that new additions will be crucial.
The Garibaldi Reds managed to survive the jaws of relegation last season after finding themselves falling into the bottom three on several occasions over the 38-game campaign, but will be hoping that with experience and confidence boosted they will have learned from their mistakes and compete more comfortably this season.
So far, Forest have added former Manchester United academy graduate Anthony Elanga and Arsenal goalkeeper Matt Turner to their squad, but are still extremely active in the transfer market and keen to bolster key positions in the team with quality.
Who are Nottingham Forest’s transfer targets?
The Forest boss took to his post-match interview after their Premier League opener at the Emirates last weekend to reiterate the need for more incomings:
“There’s nothing imminent. I have to trust the club to crack on with the work. My work is to work with the team every day, come in every day and try to get the best out of them.”
The Trentside club have been linked regularly throughout the summer with a move for Ibrahim Sangare, however, PSV Eindhoven have rejected all proposals so far including a €25m (£21m) bid this week.
Now, it looks like Forest are moving on to another midfield talent, with further reports this week from Record in Portugal suggesting that the Tricky Trees have joined the race to sign SL Benfica star Florentino Luis with the outlet claiming that Forest are preparing a £26m bid for his signature imminently.
Who is Florentino Luis?
Better known as Florentino, the Portugal U21 international has been subjected to a lot of interest from Premier League clubs this summer, as many elite English outfits are looking to improve their midfield personnel.
Liverpool, Paris Saint-Germain and Manchester City have all been named as potential suitors, a testament to the incredible performances and talent that Florentino has displayed over the last 12 months in the defensive midfield role.
Over 33 Liga Portugal appearances last season, the 23-year-old ace registered three assists, tallied up a 90% pass completion rate, successfully completed 72% of his dribbles and won 60% of his aerial and ground duels combined, as per SofaScore.
When comparing Florentino’s output with Sangare’s last season, it’s clear to see why he’d be such a good alternative.
Indeed, the pair shared many similarities in key attributes including pass completion (89.7% v 83.7%), goal-creating actions per 90 (0.21 v 0.16), percentage of dribblers tackled (69.7% v 57.5%) and aerial duels won (61% v 62.5%), as per FBref.
Football talent scout Jacek Kulig lavished praise on the Portuguese whiz following the climax of the Primeira Liga last season:
“[He has] superb work rate, positioning, timing, composure, and consistency. The Portuguese Octopus.”
With that being said, the signing of Florentino would be a major addition for Forest, especially if they could be the likes of Liverpool and Man City to the signing of the midfielder, as he could be an incredible asset to Cooper over the season ahead and beyond.
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