Murillo is the jewel in the Nottingham Forest crown, with Evangelos Marinakis very aware that Europe’s elite sides would pay a colossal fee to take him away from the City Ground.
Marinakis is in a position of strength, though, with Murillo signed to a new Forest contract in January to secure his immediate future in Nuno Espirito Santo’s plans.
Of course, this won’t have stopped the interested parties from planning their eventual move for the Brazilian, but Forest will demand a world-record fee for Murillo should the time come even to consider these offers.
Such talk of Real Madrid scouting Murillo is truly a testament to the recruitment structures that the Forest owner has put into place, structures that were heavily influenced by Saturday’s FA Cup opponents, Brighton.
Nottingham Forest have long-admired Brighton’s recruitment model
Marinakis was seen celebrating with the Forest players after the incredible 7-0 victory over Brighton in February but perhaps his jubilance was partly down to how highly he rates the Seasiders as a competitor.
Brighton’s recruitment style has seen them pluck gems from obscurity and turn them into sales that eclipse the amounts that Forest have ever received, something that Paul Taylor of The Athletic believes is something Marinakis will look to emulate.
“Forest’s hierarchy have long admired the Brighton model of investing smartly in young players with big potential and allowing them to grow with them in the Premier League.
“Which is exactly what they have done with Murillo, as well as Anthony Elanga, Callum Hudson-Odoi, Neco Williams, Elliot Anderson and others.”
Another in this model has been Morgan Gibbs-White, showing that the Reds are succeeding in the first stages of emulating the Brighton model, with the next steps being the eventual sales.
The most likely in the Forest squad would still be Murillo, with Taylor discussing the latest on the Brazilian’s future.
Nottingham Forest expert discusses the prospect of a Murillo sale
Alongside Real Madrid, Liverpool have shown an interest in Murillo as a long-term successor to Virgil van Dijk, but the urgency of a sale on Forest’s end will be significantly lessened due to the likely Champions League qualification.
Taylor explained: “There are two different aspects to this. One being the player himself having his head turned, if any significant offers do come in from any ‘bigger’ clubs. The other is whether Forest need to sell – and whether anyone hits the magic number that would make them consider doing so.
“When it comes to the first part, if Forest do qualify for the Champions League, it would surely only work in their favour, in that Murillo would not have to move to another club to play on one of the biggest stages in the game. He would get to play in Europe with Forest.”
Whether a sale is necessary for the Reds is to be seen in the financial reports, but Forest’s £16m net spend this season should hopefully mean that there isn’t an urgency to cash in on Murillo/
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