Nottingham Forest man Scott McKennna could be on borrowed time after weekend snub

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Nottingham Forest lost 2-0 at Manchester City on Saturday and for Scott McKenna, time could soon be up at the City Ground. The Reds defender wasn’t named in the 20-man squad to face the champions at the Etihad Stadium.

The left-sided central defender deserves zero criticism. Since checking in at Forest during the summer of 2020, McKenna has proved to be a quality player and also a very likeable character.

Scott McKenna: What’s the story?

The man with 29 caps for Scotland has given absolutely everything to the club. Forest took a chance on McKenna from Aberdeen after other English clubs had toyed with signing him.

After a difficult first season at the club in terms of injuries, McKenna really kicked on during 2021/22. He was integral as the club won promotion and missed just one game in the Championship all season.

During that memorable campaign, he was named the club’s Player of the Year and to cap things off, he also won the Man of the Match accolade as Forest won the play-off final at Wembley.

Last season, McKenna did okay in the Premier League. He made 24 appearances in total but did miss some of the season with a hamstring problem that he picked up in February.

Could McKenna now leave Forest?

It would be a sad day but perhaps the 26-year-old could simply fall foul to a sign of the times. Forest are now a Premier League club and a tough decision will have to be made.

McKenna is out of contract in the summer of 2024. As a result, he’d be allowed to discuss pre-contract terms with overseas clubs as early as January should an offer be forthcoming.

The defender got away with some suspect defending against Burnley. A goal was ruled out when Sander Berge handled but the whole situation didn’t cover McKenna in glory.

Quite simply he perhaps lacks the pace required to play consistently well in the Premier League. Right now, he’s a decent squad option should Steve Cooper want to play three at the back.

With the likes of Murillo and Andrew Omobamidele now joining Joe Worrall, Willy Boly, Moussa Niakhate and Felipe as the central defensive options, things look bleak for McKenna.

He wasn’t in the 20-man squad for Saturday’s game at Manchester City. With that in mind, this could be Forest’s way of saying that they’re now preparing for life after McKenna at the end of this season.