Nottingham Forest are set to complete the signing of Sporting CP defender Ousmane Diomande.
The Reds look to have won the race to sign the player, with Oliver Glasner very keen to bring the Ivory Coast international to the football club.
Where would Nottingham Forest finish in the Premier League with a back three of Murillo, Diomande and Milenkovic?
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Forest have a host of central defenders at the club, with Murillo, Nikola Milenkovic, Morato, Jair Cunha, Zach Abbott and Tyler Bindon all competing for places.
The signing of Diomande does clearly suggest that Glasner wants to play with three central defenders, and a deal could be close to completion.
How much Nottingham Forest will pay for Ousmane Diomande
It’s been claimed in the media today that Forest will hope to strike a deal in the region of £35 million with a string of add-ons included.
Diomande is ready to get back to training after a rest following his participation at the World Cup in the United States, where the Ivory Coast reached the last-32.
Now, Forest look set to win the race for the central defender, and after three seasons playing for Sporting CP, he will arrive at the City Ground with Champions League experience.
Diomande has a release clause in his contract of £75 million, and as a result, it feels as though Forest are getting themselves a real steal.
Why Forest don’t have to pay the release clause
Ultimately, top players in Portugal have release clauses just to cover themselves from the likes of the Premier League and La Liga.
Although Diomande has a release clause of £75 million, it was always unlikely they’d receive that valuation for a central defender.
What message would you send to George Syrianos as he gets to work in his new role replacing Edu? Are you happy with the decision?
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Last summer, Sporting sold Viktor Gyokeres to Arsenal for £84 million, and on that occasion they were able to get the player’s release clause.
However, Diomande’s importance to Sporting is different, and despite having four years to run on his existing contract, Forest are doing extremely well to strike a deal for Diomande.
In this instance, the release clause clearly isn’t worth the paper it’s written on, and this could be one of the best pieces of business Forest do all summer if they can get it over the line.
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