Nottingham Forest are being extensively linked to Marcus Edwards, with Nuno Espirito Santo looking to his home nation to solve his need for extra attacking options.
Forest are interested in Edwards to offer support for the likes of Anthony Elanga and Callum Hudson-Odoi on the road to securing European football.
It looks to be a no-brainer for Espirito Santo as Sporting are desperate to see the English winger leave Lisbon, looking to sell Edwards for under £10 million.
Whilst Evangelos Marinakis wants to sign a striker for Forest in January, a move for Edwards could be a reasonable alternative for the window as he would provide unique attributes to the Forest squad, with his more direct speed complimenting the measured approach of the likes of Morgan Gibbs-White.
Given that Edwards has signed with a new agency which suggests an urgency to his transfer, here is all you need to know about the life and career of Marcus Edwards.
How old is Marcus Edwards?
Edwards was born on the 3rd of December, 1998, making him 26 years old as of January 2025. His senior career has spanned nine years thus far, getting his start at Tottenham Hotspur.
Has Marcus Edwards played for England?
Born in Enfield, London, Edwards had a stellar youth career for the England national team but never managed to make his way into the senior set-up, last playing for the under-20s in 2018.
Marcus Edwards Tottenham Hotspur
Despite his strong performances at national level, Edwards never made an impact for Spurs in his time at his boyhood club. Edwards made just a single appearance for Spurs as a substitute in the League Cup before being sold to Vitoria de Guimaraes.
Bizarrely, the then Spurs boss Mauricio Pochettino referred to Edwards as having Lionel Messi-like qualities according to a report by Sky Sports, making his lack of appearances at the club seem strange.
Marcus Edwards stats
Edwards deserves great credit for pushing ahead in his career despite his time at Tottenham not working out, with his spells in Portugal especially showing that he can still fulfil his potential.
| Club | Appearances | Goals | Assists |
| Tottenham Hotspur (2016-2019) | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Norwich City- loan (2017-2018) | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Excelsior- loan (2018-2019) | 28 | 2 | 4 |
| Vitoria de Guimaraes | 95 | 20 | 8 |
| Sporting CP | 120 | 24 | 17 |
In the 23/24 season with Sporting, Edwards’ 12 goal contributions came alongside 3.21 chances created per 90 minutes, whilst his 6.56 touches in the opposition’s box highlighted his ability to remain involved in attacks.
Edwards also completed 1.61 successful crosses that season, which would greatly benefit Chris Wood in the Forest attack.
Marcus Edwards salary
According to Capology, Edwards is currently earning £22,000 per week at Sporting, which would undoubtedly make him an affordable option for Evangelos Marinakis. He will want a wage increase but his untenable situation in Portugal should make the deal very viable for the Forest owner.
Marcus Edwards Liverpool
The Englishman has been continuously linked with a return to the Premier League since his emergence in the Sporting side, with a potential move to Merseyside highly touted in April 2024.
Football Insider reported that Edwards was of interest to Liverpool at the time when Ruben Amorim was favourite to replace Jurgen Klopp.
However, the links died down when Arne Slot took the job, leaving Edwards to spend another season in Portugal.
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