Nottingham Forest have been handed a blow by Bayer Leverkusen in the club’s quest to sign Jonathan Tah. According to 90Min, the Bundesliga outfit aren’t willing to weaken their rearguard this month.
Forest had hoped to sign Tah before tomorrow’s transfer deadline. He had been identified as a player who could strengthen Forest’s defence, with Steve Cooper keen to add a central defender.
Xabi Alonso is standing firm, however. He’s got Leverkusen on the right path and he doesn’t want that work to be undone by losing his top players during the mid-season window.
Forest are in the market for a new central defender this month. They’ve been linked with Felipe from Atletico Madrid and Besiktas star Romain Saiss before the deadline tomorrow.
Tah has been with Leverkusen since 2015. He checked in from Hamburg and quickly became an integral member of the team, impressing the supporters with his powerful defensive style.
The 26-year-old was thought to be valued at around £25 million. But, with Leverkusen not keen to sell, however, the Reds will be left disappointed this month and must look elsewhere.
Tah is an uncompromising figure with top-level experience. Cooper is wanting competition for Joe Worrall, Willy Boly, Scott McKenna and Steve Cook. Moussa Niakhate is also out injured at present.
Forest handed blow over Tah
The talented player would have been a quality signing for the Reds. He’s become a cult hero at Leverkusen and it’s easy to see why they don’t want to lose him this month.
The £57,000-a-week Tah might well move on during the summer. If he were to go at that point it would give Alonso plenty of time to try and sign an adequate replacement and he will likely stay on Forest’s radar.
The Reds will want to make sure their squad is well-stocked. Clearly, Cooper isn’t entirely satisfied with his current defensive options and it will be interesting to see who is added before tomorrow’s deadline.