Nottingham Forest must act now as England-capped star is announced as a free agent

Add as preferred source on Google

Nottingham Forest are active in the transfer window, with one announcement surely signalling to Evangelos Marinakis who he should target next.

With Igor Jesus arriving at Forest after the Club World Cup, Marinakis has turned his attention to bulking out the Reds’ squad, plotting a double swoop for two Juventus wingers.

So far, Timothy Weah isn’t sure about the Forest move, but Juventus teammate Samuel Mbangula is showing more excitement about the opportunity.

Adding depth is clearly a priority in this window, though, so one player who has just become available for free looks to be a no-brainer to fill two slots in the Forest squad.

Nottingham Forest can sign Kyle Walker-Peters on a free transfer

Nuno Espírito Santo wants to strengthen four positions in his squad, with left-back one of them after Harry Toffolo departed the club and Alex Moreno’s loan move expired.

A player like Kyle Walker-Peters could be perfect, then, given that he can play on both sides of a defence and, crucially, will cost Forest nothing at all.

The full-back has ended his 5-year association with Southampton following their relegation back to the Championship last season, undoubtedly capturing the attention of plenty of Premier League sides looking for a clever free transfer.

Walker-Peters played 33 times for The Saints last season and has been an ever-present throughout his time there, offering Espírito Santo reliable cover for both Neco Williams and Ola Aina, cover that was sorely missed when Aina was injured at the back end of the season.

It’s not just cover that the 28-year-old offers, though, as Walker-Peters’ talents have seen him garner some lofty praise during his career.

Kyle Walker-Peters was once compared with Philipp Lahm

With the UEFA Conference League in the mix for the 25/26 campaign, another English talent would help with squad registration rules. However, the Walker-Peters love-in at Southampton once led to former boss Ralph Hasenhuttl comparing him to a full-back of international acclaim.

Speaking to the Daily Echo in 2022 after Walker-Peters had played in an advanced midfield role against Manchester United for Southampton, Hasenhuttl said: “Kyle is an unbelievably smart footballer with a super football intelligence. He plays left-back, right-back and now on the 10.

“In the sessions sometimes he plays six also, so he can play every position. He reminds me a little bit of Philipp Lahm I must say, because he is so good on the ball, he always makes good decisions. He can run and rarely makes mistakes.”

High football intelligence is something harder to scout but when available, tacticians like Espírito Santo will latch onto it. Therefore, Walker-Peters’ ability to play almost anywhere due to his intelligence could make him another bargain signing for Forest.