Nottingham Forest enjoyed a positive transfer window this summer with 11 new players signings and over 20 departing the City Ground either on loan or permanently.
With the second international break upon us, Forest are 10th in the Premier League table and already have 10 points from seven games played so far.
Of the 11 new additions, two of them – David Carmo and Marko Stamenic – joined Olympiacos on season-long loan deals with the aim of heading to Forest next summer.
Carmo’s pedigree is there for all to see. He was a kingpin at centre-back last season as the Evangelos Marinakis-owned Olympiacos became the first Greek team to claim European glory by winning the Europa Conference League.
Stamenic is more of an unknown quantity. He was signed from Red Star Belgrade and the only thing that Forest fans really knew about him was that he played alongside Chris Wood for the New Zealand national team.
New Zealand media deliver intriguing verdict on Marko Stamenic
Forest fans will be intrigued to discover how the unknown midfielder is getting on and this morning he was in action as the All Whites took on Malaysia on home soil.
It will come as no surprise to anyone of a Forest persuasion that Wood scored once again and right now he’s in red-hot form for club and country.
Stamenic was starting the game as a central midfielder and the New Zealand Herald had some positive comments to make about the player.
After the game, it was written in the match report: “He created space often and that became a real pattern. He really stood out in this game playing as a central midfielder.”
Stamenic might get Forest chance next season
It’s really intriguing that had Stamenic stayed at Forest he might be in line for a debut against Crystal Palace when domestic football returns next week.
Danilo and Ibrahim Sangare are both ruled out long-term, whilst James Ward-Prowse will be banned for the visit of the Eagles after being sent off against Chelsea.
That leaves Ryan Yates, Elliot Anderson and Nicolas Dominguez to compete for the two midfielder places next time out.
Stamenic was a bit of a surprise signing when it was announced that Forest had taken him from Red Star Belgrade and immediately loaned him to Olympiacos.
Given that he’s only 22, however, there is clearly some method to the signing and he could still improve as his career progresses.
He’s made five appearances for the Greek outfit so far this season and as the season progresses, the hope will be that he can play a more starring role and really showcase his talents to Forest on the club scene.
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