Yoane Wissa makes ‘next level’ Nottingham Forest claim amid transfer speculation

Add as preferred source on Google

Yoane Wissa will be a name that is constantly linked with Nottingham Forest in the summer, making his recent comments on the club particularly interesting.

Wissa was targeted by Forest in January in what was a show of true ambition from Evangelos Marinakis, who looked to poach the goalscorer of one of Forest’s Premier League rivals.

The links intensified when Forest had a bid rejected for Wissa, but the Congolese striker certainly looked to be available to the Reds, as it was suggested that Brentford had set a £40m price tag for Wissa.

So, ahead of the summer transfer window, it’s particularly interesting to hear Wissa talk directly about Forest in a recent interview.

Yoane Wissa loves ‘next level’ Nottingham Forest trait

Wissa is a summer target for Forest after the striker’s form continued into the second half of the season, racking up 18 Premier League goals, including one against Forest in the 2-0 home defeat to Brentford.

Nuno Espirito Santo would love to add another poacher of Chris Wood’s level to his ranks, and Wissa could well be that player, given what he has recently said about the Reds on the Obi One Podcast.

Wissa said: “I think what Forest have done well [in games this season], one-nil, done. Of course, they’ve won four, five-nil, etc, but some games, one-nil game done.

“I think that’s the next level we need to add to our [Brentford’s] game.”

For a player to hail another team’s tactics as the “next level” for their own side is certainly bizarre, but for Forest, a welcome piece of information as the Congolese sees the club as above Brentford in this aspect.

The feeling is surely mutual, given that Wissa actually outshone Wood in a number of key stats this season.

Where Yoane Wissa excels over Chris Wood

Espirito Santo has had to defend Wood recently after the Kiwi international returned from a brief injury in sub-par form. This certainly doesn’t impact his standing within the Forest squad, but it is worth noting where Wissa actually outshines Wood statistically.

The caveat to Wood’s dip in form could well be that he has lacked the service to score more goals, so Wissa’s marginally higher shots on target and successful dribbles rate could be the antidote to this, as the 28-year-old is more actively involved in games.

Perhaps the most important difference, though, is seen in the passing department. Wissa completes nearly 13% more of his attempted passes per game than Wood, which would help bring more players into the attack. A similar argument can be made for his stronger ability to win fouls as well.

Clearly, bringing Wissa to the City Ground would be beneficial to Forest purely for the additional goals, but he could also offer additional strengths that Wood perhaps lacks.