Nottingham Forest have sent their young guns over to Poland for their pre-season tour and goalkeeper Theo Avery has been spotted. The 17-year-old checked in this summer from Nottinghamshire rivals Mansfield Town.
The young Reds will have gained some invaluable experience on this tour. One pretty useful experience for the players was the chance to face RB Leipzig in a friendly match last week.
Forest were beaten 3-2 by the German outfit but did lead the clash 2-1. Ultimately, fitness told in the end but this still proved a very useful experience for the Reds who held their own.
The Reds uploaded a behind-the-scenes video of the trip on YouTube. Avery appeared in the footage and it looked as though he made an appearance for a young Forest side against Leipzig.
The teenager was with Mansfield Town last season. During his time at the RH Academy, he established himself as the number one goalkeeper with the under-18s, featuring heavily under Sam Collins.
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Interestingly, Forest legend Steve Chettle has replaced Collins now but he won’t have Avery to call upon. Instead, the goalkeeper will hope to grasp the opportunity at Forest with both hands.
Forest take Avery from Mansfield and the future looks bright
The talented stopper looks like he could prove to be a very useful signing for the Reds. At Mansfield, he proved a confident performer and showcased that he had the ability to go a long way in the game.
Avery highlighted strong distribution skills during his time at One Call Stadium. His reputation was so substantial that Stags’ boss Nigel Clough had him on the pitch warming up with the senior goalkeepers on a matchday.
It was hard to see how Avery performed during his outing for Forest against Leipzig. He did concede an own goal when one of his teammates slid a backpass out of his reach and into the net.
The 17-year-old will now hope to impress with his new club. He should get plenty of opportunities to play during 2023/24 and it will be interesting to see if he can kick on after leaving Mansfield for Forest.