Aberdeen boss Derek McInnes has compared the situation surrounding Forest target Scott McKenna to that of Virgil van Dijk several years ago.
The Reds are among a clutch of clubs keen on landing the highly-rated Scotland defender this summer. McInnes has told the Daily Record that interest in his star man is of no surprise.
Forest boss Sabri Lamouchi has been busy stamping his authority on the squad ahead of Saturday’s curtain-raiser.
Eight new players have been added to the squad this summer and more could follow.
At the weekend it emerged that Forest had seen a bid of £3 million rejected by Aberdeen (Scottish Sun).
Aberdeen want £10 million for the Scotland international, although McInnes concedes a lower bid with sufficient add-ons could be accepted.
Virgil van Dijk left Celtic for Southampton in 2015 for £13 million (BBC Sport), before switching to Liverpool for a staggering £75 million (BBC Sport).
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McInnes envisages similarities with the current Aberdeen ace.
He told the Daily Record: “We have had this situation before with our league and have seen so many players go down to England where the valuation has increased pretty quickly.
“Sometimes people have just played a handful of games and it has shot up. Look at Virgil van Dijk, once he was in a Southampton strip he was worth a lot more. John McGinn is another.
“My opinion of Scott is high, he’s the best defender in this country and he’ll get to 50 caps pretty quickly.”
The Seat Pitch Summary
McInnes perhaps has a point with regards to McKenna and the deal bearing resemblance to van Dijk’s situation all those years ago.
If he arrives at Forest and plays a full season for the Reds in the Championship, his valuation will certainly shoot up.
The Reds could do a lot worse than pursue the 22-year-old and he would complement the club’s other central defenders nicely.
With the deadline quickly approaching, it remains to be seen whether Forest will enter with another bid for the enforcer.
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