Nottingham Forest confirmed a late deal for Joel Ndala before the transfer window closed on Monday, with the winger’s star performances in the past putting him in good company.
Only breaking with mere minutes left of the window, Forest agreed a deal for Ndala to the surprise of the whole footballing world, let alone Forest fans.
It seemed as though all business was completed after Forest signed Tyler Bindon from Reading but Evangelos Marinakis had one more surprise in store for before the lights turned off at the City Ground.
Ndala will initially link up with the Forest Academy after completing his loan switch to the club, which has the option to be made permanent by Forest should he impress in his time in the youth ranks.
He had made 12 appearances for PSV Eindhoven’s B team who play in the second division of Dutch football this season, though, therefore possessing a level of senior experience should Nuno Espirito Santo require extra bodies in the Forest squad.
It’s the youth ranks he has shone in throughout his young career, however, with one former coach remarking on how he managed to outshine Arsenal wonderkid, Ethan Nwaneri.
Joel Ndala starred over Ethan Nwaneri on the international stage
Ndala has starred for the England youth ranks from under 16 level, with his most recent stint at international level coming in the under-19 team.
However, it was his spell at the Under 17 World Cup in 2023 that caught the eye the most, leading to his former coach at Port Vale, Callum Rollings, ranking him above some top talent in the side.
Speaking to The Guardian after England were surprisingly eliminated from the tournament by Uzbekistan, Rollings said: “Joel was the one bright spark from England’s team at the World Cup who everyone wants to know about now. But I’m sure he will make an even bigger name for himself in the future.”
The new Forest Academy man lined up alongside the likes of Nwaneri, his Arsenal teammate Myles Lewis-Skelly and current Southampton ace Tyler Dibling, but managed to shine above the lot by scoring in England’s winning goal against Iran as well as the equaliser against Uzbekistan.
However, this tournament was far from a breakout for the Forest owner’s latest coup, with Rollings explaining just how talented Ndala was from an even younger age.
Joel Ndala was a ‘special’ talent from a young age
The report continued with Rollings recounting his first thoughts on Ndala when he originally burst onto the scene in the Port Vale youth set-up.
Rollings said: “From the first moment you could tell he was something special. […] He just had this belief in his own ability, even though he was such a young lad. Joel’s the best I’ve ever seen at that age. It was always like he was still playing in the playground.
“He was just unbelievable – in his own age group he stood out like a sore thumb. We did try to hide him a little bit but the main thing was that he wasn’t being tested and that’s why he went up two years. There was always a lot of interest around him.”
That interest would eventually see Ndala picked up by Manchester City, before arriving at the Forest training ground as the transfer window slammed shut.
His pedigree on the international stage will hopefully see Ndala follow the same trend as Morgan Gibbs-White and Callum Hudson-Odoi’s England glory with the two now integral members of Espirito Santo’s side after making a name for themselves at the Under 17 World Cup with their nation.
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