‘There was interest’: Former Nottingham Forest winger claims Aston Villa once tried to sign him

Add as preferred source on Google

Nottingham Forest faced interest in Joe Lolley in 2019 but chose not to sell him to Aston Villa following their promotion to the Premier League.

The former winger has been speaking with the Football Friends podcast.

So, what has Lolley said about the interest in him from Aston Villa when he was at Forest? Let’s take a closer look…

Joe Lolley says Aston Villa wanted to sign him from Nottingham Forest

Well, it’s not really a secret that Villa wanted to sign him, although it’s never been completely confirmed by Lolley himself – until now.

The winger is currently playing for A-League outfit Sydney FC where he headed when he was deemed surplus to requirements by Forest.

Now, Lolley has opened up on his time at Forest and he was also quizzed on the interest that Villa held in him when he was at the City Ground.

He told the Football Friends podcast: “It was interesting, I was so happy at Forest and I never once looked to move or was desperate to move.

“I know that a club had put a bid in during the January transfer window and it got rejected but I didn’t look to force a move or anything.

“There was a bit of interest again from Villa at the end of the 2018/19 campaign but I think Forest sort of priced them out but I was happy to stay.

“It would have been cool to go to Villa – and it’d have been a bit more money as they’d just reached the Premier League – but I was genuinely happy at Forest.”

Intriguingly one of Lolley’s best performances for Forest came against Villa during 2018/19 when he scored and claimed four assists during a 5-5 draw.

Forest did well to keep hold of tricky winger

Lolley played for Forest at a time when typically every summer saw one prized asset offloaded for mega money.

In our view, Forest did exceptionally well to keep hold of Lolley for five years as he became a fan favourite on Trentside.

Lolley was brilliant during the 2018/19 campaign, scoring 12 goals and claiming 11 assists.

As a result, it was no surprise that a club the size of Aston Villa was keen and it’s testament to him that he stuck at the City Ground.

Lolley is now settled in Australia and he’s enjoying a quality 2023/24 campaign, helping himself to 13 goal contributions.