Nottingham Forest didn’t manage to strengthen the first-team squad on transfer deadline day but there was a late piece of good news for the Reds.
With the window drawing to a close, Forest struck to bring Joel Ndala to the club. He’s signed on loan from Manchester City where it’s expected that the move will become permanent during the summer for £4 million.
Fabrizio Romano broke the news and claimed that Evangelos Marinakis had come up trumps. That seemed a little bit extreme and given a lack of senior football on loan at PSV this always felt like an addition for the B-Team.
Ndala didn’t travel with the Forest first team down to Exeter for the FA Cup fourth-round game tonight and instead made his first outing in the Garibaldi against Derby in a Premier League 2 clash last night.
It proved difficult to bring a striker to the club last month. Yoane Wissa was eyed by Forest but Thomas Frank was keen to keep his talisman at Brentford at least until the end of the campaign.
- READ MORE: Jamie Carragher hails Nottingham Forest star
How Joel Ndala fared on Nottingham Forest debut
This proved to be a pretty decent night for the Reds against their East Midlands rivals. The two senior outfits might be a million miles away from any sort of rivalry these days but for the young guns this game still means a lot.
Derby started well too and took an early lead through Lennon Wheeldon on 21 minutes. Things stayed that way until the 73rd minute when Kristian Fletcher restored parity and earned Forest a point.
It was Ndala in the limelight though after his move from Manchester City. The youngster played in a forward position and managed the full 90 minutes during the contest.
He had a really good chance to score but saw a goalkeeper in top form tip it away when it seemed destined for the top corner of the net.
The game was shown live on Forest TV and WT Analysis also praised the performance of Ndala who looked lively throughout the contest.
That account posted: “Ndala showed glimpses of his talent in his first #NFFC appearance.”
Ndala might get first team opportunity at Forest this season
The 18-year-old operates out wide or as a striker and with Forest not overly stocked on options in that area of the pitch, there could be senior opportunities for him to look forward to.
Ndala is a tricky performer and when you come through the Manchester City academy ranks, it’s clear that the potential is there and simply needs unearthing.
The teen will have to earn his stripes with the B-Team first. Warren Joyce has a brilliant track record with young players and he could be a good head coach for him in the short term.
With Callum Hudson-Odoi and Anthony Elanga the first choices out wide his chances of getting in the starting eleven right now do look somewhat slim.
However, an injury to Jota Silva or Ramon Sosa might open the door for Ndala to try and prove himself from the bench before the season finishes.
Receive a digest of our best Nottingham Forest content each week direct to your mailbox
