The need for more incomings was highlighted once again last night as Steve Cooper’s side fell to a 5-0 defeat to French side Rennes at St George’s Park.
The Reds were beyond poor all over the pitch, with poor defensive mistakes and a lack of shots on goal contributing to the embarrassing scoreline.
A handful of players came out of the game with any sort of credibility, with the majority looking sluggish reiterating the need for fresh faces at the City Ground.
So far this window, Cooper’s side have made Chris Wood’s deal permanent whilst signing Ola Aina for free, with Anthony Elanga joining from Manchester United.
Even though a repeat of last summer’s frantic window needs to be avoided, multiple incomings are still needed to build on the 16th-place finish achieved last campaign.
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Where must Forest improve?
Although the Reds have three first-team goalkeepers, improvements are still needed in that department.
George Shelvey is expected to leave the club on loan, with Ethan Horvath wanting consistent first-team minutes which would leave Wayne Hennessey as the only senior option.
It is no secret the club have been linked with Dean Henderson all window long, but with just over a week until Cooper’s side travel to Arsenal, an alternative may need to be looked at.
Defensively, Forest were inept last night again highlighting an area which needs sorting as soon as possible.
With Moussa Niakhate injured, and Felipe yet to feature in pre-season, it means we could see Joe Worrall and either Scott McKenna or Willy Bolly play in central defence at the Emirates next weekend.
The club need reinforcements at the back to try and improves on the 68 goals conceded in the Premier League last time around.
For the last 12 months, the Reds’ midfield has been crying out for an anchor to break up the play in front of the back four.
The pre-season encounter last night once again highlighted the need to invest in a top-quality midfielder.
PSV midfielder Ibrahim Sangare has been labelled as Cooper’s number-one target this window, with the 25-year-old reportedly having a £32 million release clause.
The fee for the Ivorian may seem hefty, but it is a deal that would undoubtedly transform the midfield department.
Sangare, who has been described as unstoppable, is also subject to interest from clubs such as PSG and Liverpool.