Nottingham Forest are enjoying a fine 2024/25 campaign and in the dressing room right now there are a number of top players.
The Reds have reaped the rewards of a less chaotic summer on the transfer front, with just 11 new players signing during the close season and two of those joining Olympiacos on loan for the campaign.
Forest went with a quality over quantity approach to transfers in the summer. Crucially, none of the star players were sold with Moussa Niakhate, Orel Mangala and Odysseas Vlachodimos all leaving to balance the books.
Elliot Anderson has been praised by Gary Neville this season. He – along with Nikola Milenkovic – have proved the two main signings made by Forest and the team are currently sat third in the Premier League table.
Nottingham Forest star Murillo now officially one of the best in Europe
One of the brightest aspects of the summer transfer window was the club’s determination to reject offers for Murillo and Morgan Gibbs-White among other top performers.
Murillo is wanted by a number of top clubs. Forest signed the player in the summer of 2023 and he’s been virtually ever-present since the club landed him from Corinthians for just £10.6 million.
Some statistics from FBRef claim that Murillo is now outperforming most defenders across Europe and he sits top in a number of metrics when using players from the top five European leagues.
Murillo has made 56 blocks this season and that puts him top of the list for players in the top five divisions across the continent – and that’s not the only list he tops when discussing defensive actions.
He’s blocked the most shots across Europe and also rates highly when it comes to long passes too, completing 84.6% of the long passes that he’s attempted during his appearances this season.
Forest need Champions League football to keep Murillo
Forest fought off Manchester City to land Murillo and Pep Guardiola will get a glimpse of the Brazilian in action on Saturday when the Citizens arrive at the City Ground.
Although Murillo signed a new contract in January that might be merely to help Forest ensure the club gets top whack when the time does come to eventually cash in on the defender.
Clubs will be chasing the star man in the summer and some of the interest will come from the Premier League, with Chelsea, Liverpool and Manchester City linked previously.
Champions League football will give Forest a brilliant chip to barter with in the summer. If the elite club competition is on the agenda for the Reds in 2025/26, then perhaps Murillo will decide to stick on Trentside for at least another season.
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