Evangelos Marinakis has been consistently making smart decisions when it comes to Nottingham Forest’s transfer decisions, with the details behind the club’s process now revealed.
Club owners must stay focused amongst the chaos of transfer rumours in the summer and Marinakis looks to be doing just that, as Nottingham Forest News revealed that Forest aren’t looking to sign Dusan Vlahovic despite extensive speculation surrounding the expensive striker.
Instead, the Forest owner is playing the smart game of trusting the expertise of his recruitment team, who looked to have picked out another gem as Igor Jesus shines at the Club World Cup.
But how are these talents identified? Well, Forest’s Head of Recruitment has been speaking in an interview to explain just how the transfer business operates.
Nottingham Forest’s recruitment chief explains transfer process
Plenty of Nuno Espírito Santo’s coaching staff are Portuguese, and the recruitment team are no different, with Pedro Ferreira heading up the department after 17 years of experience at Benfica.
Ferreira’s experience makes him perfect for the role under the ambitious Marinakis and speaking to TransferRoom, the Portuguese transfer guru explained just how everyone at the club plays their part in the process.
“You need a lot of time, you need to see a lot of football matches. […] You then identify a lot of players and select the ones that fit the criteria that we need to play for our team.
“Then, we meet with the players and try to identify the human being. That is something that is very important to us at Nottingham Forest. From the ownership to the head coach […], we are always discussing the human being first.
“If you have a clear bond between the whole team, it’s easier. Working in a team, you have to trust everybody, so adding someone who is an outlier, it’s very difficult to manage.”
This synergy must make Ferreira’s job much more rewarding and enjoyable, something he echoed when explaining why he made the switch to the City Ground.
Why Pedro Ferreira wanted to join Nottingham Forest
Benfica are Champions League regulars so moving away from the club must have been a tricky choice, but Ferreira explained in the interview why a switch to Forest made sense.
He said: “I reached a point in my life both professionally and personally where I was ready to move forward. Both Benfica and Nottingham Forest are ambitious organisations, so it was an instant match when they approached me for the role.
“Benfica is always a team fighting for the league, and Nottingham Forest is a very ambitious club that is creating everything to try to achieve that [as well]. That’s the ambition I love in the club.”
If Forest are to start competing for silverware like Benfica does every season, the recruitment strategy will have to stay consistently good, something that Ferreira looks to have no problem in achieving.
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