Nottingham Forest look set to make a major breakthrough in the transfer market, following on from their £34m purchase of Dan Ndoye.
Edu was delighted to secure Ndoye after competing with Napoli for his signature, signalling a positive turn in the club’s transfer business.
The work doesn’t stop, though, as Nuno Espírito Santo wants five more signings through the door, potentially signalling the Forest boss’ move towards a tactical switch.
One of the positions targeted looks to be a central midfielder, with significant moves now being made to secure a potential game-changer for Espírito Santo after a personal request from the Portuguese boss.
Douglas Luiz talks advance after Nuno Espírito Santo request
After a summer of rumours, Forest have made contact with Douglas Luiz over a potential deal, with Juventus looking to move the Brazilian on.
Luiz recently skipped Juventus training with his desire to return to the Premier League well documented. According to Tuttosport, it looks as if Forest are strong favourites to secure his signature after direct influence from Espírito Santo.
The report said: “Nottingham Forest’s attempt to bring Douglas Luiz back to the Premier League is in full swing.
“President Evangelos Marinakis’s club has broken the deadlock and opened negotiations with Juventus to secure the midfielder, who represents an explicit request from manager Nuno Espírito Santo.”
Having the backing of Nuno makes the Luiz deal one that Forest should be pursuing, with his track record in the Premier League only adding to the reasons to bring him in.
However, the two clubs are slightly apart in their valuations for the Brazilian midfielder, with some work to be done to move the deal on.
Nottingham Forest and Juventus are apart in Douglas Luiz valuation
Forest also looked at the former Aston Villa man back in January, spearheaded by Edu’s admiration for Luiz from when he was in charge of Arsenal’s recruitment.
Despite Juventus’ desire to see Luiz leave, though, they aren’t willing to take a cheap deal, with the report detailing how far apart the clubs are in negotiations.
The report continued: “€40 million is needed to acquire Douglas. Nottingham, on the other hand, is leaning more towards a costly loan with an option to buy for a total package of €32-33 million. In short, negotiations still need to be made to reach a satisfactory agreement for everyone.”
Forest were in a similar position when Bologna rejected the opening Ndoye bid, but the intervention of Marinakis in the negotiations saw the Reds make quick progress to secure the winger, so fans will be hoping a similar scenario plays out in the Luiz case.
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