Nottingham Forest haven’t had the best of time when it comes to recruiting goalkeepers since returning to the Premier League.
The Reds first signed Dean Henderson on a season-long loan from Manchester United.
He was the man Steve Cooper wanted as his number one and it looked like a transfer that could easily be made permanent if he did well.
Henderson did well for 20 games but then suffered a thigh injury which saw Forest sign Keylor Navas on loan instead.
Earning £200,000-a-week at PSG, Navas was never going to be a realistic permanent addition – but he did a good job nonetheless.
Forest held reservations about signing Henderson permanently and in the summer of 2023 signed Matt Turner and Odysseas Vlachodimos.
Both players were poor for Forest and have now departed, with Matz Sels taking the number-one mantle.
Nottingham Forest transfer target now outperforming Matz Sels as second-best in Europe
If we rewind this whole chain of goalkeeping dramas, every road leads back to Brice Samba.
He was the man who helped Forest win promotion but then chose to return to France to sign for Lens in the summer of 2022.
Since moving back to France he’s become one of the best goalkeepers in Europe and a France international.
Forest wanted Samba in the summer but a deal couldn’t be struck between the two parties.
Now, according to FBRef, the goalkeeper is currently the second-best in Europe when comparing the top five European divisions.
Samba has a save percentage of 87.8% and that is only bettered by Liverpool stopper Alisson.
The Lens star has made 32 saves this season which is two more than Sels who actually sits in 19th place on the list when it comes to save percentage.
Forest fans would welcome back Brice Samba in a flash
It’s hard to make a compelling argument to suggest that Forest don’t miss Samba.
The club haven’t replaced him since he departed in 2022 and although Sels is decent enough, the statistics prove that he’s not in Samba’s ilk.
Samba was back at the City Ground for the recent game against Crystal Palace and Lewis Grabban posted a cryptic message.
It came as a bit of a surprise when it was claimed that Forest wanted to re-sign Samba this summer.
The 30-year-old is a little younger than Sels and it would be hard to imagine Lens wanting their number one custodian to depart.
However, that doesn’t mean that Forest should stop trying.
Playing in the Premier League would surely be a dream for Samba and if Forest could strike something in January, it’s a transfer that would be extremely popular on Trentside.
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