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Nottingham Forest want Adama Traore as they close in on separate club-record deal
John Percy
3 minutes
Nottingham Forest target Adama Traore of Fulham. Photo by Malcolm Couzens/Getty Images
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Nuno Espirito Santo is targeting a reunion with Adama Traore, as Nottingham Forest also close in on the club-record signing of Dan Ndoye.
The Fulham winger is emerging as a serious target for Nuno who is prioritising wide men after the £55m (€63m) sale of Anthony Elanga to Newcastle. Adama worked with Nuno at Wolves and Forest are ready to open talks with Fulham over a potential deal.
Forest are also in advanced negotiations with Bologna for Ndoye and a deal to sign the Switzerland international is reaching a conclusion.
Bologna have adopted a hardline stance on Ndoye’s future this month and demanded that Forest break their transfer record in order to complete a transfer. Forest’s current record is the £30m spent on Ivory Coast international Ibrahim Sangaré, while instalments for Morgan Gibbs-White have now topped the £30m mark after he initially arrived from Wolves for £25m in August 2022.
Ndoye (24) has informed Bologna of his desire to play in the Premier League and negotiations are now at an advanced stage. He will sign a five-year contract if, as expected, he seals a move to the City Ground.
It is understood that Evangelos Marinakis, the Forest owner, is now in direct contact with Bologna’s board to push the deal over the line.
Forest are prioritising the addition of at least two new wingers, after the sale of Elanga to Newcastle and Ramón Sosa to Palmeiras for £10m.
Jota Silva is also expected to depart, with strong interest from clubs in Portugal and Saudi Arabia, so Forest are focusing on new winger signings, with the flanks a crucial position under Nuno’s style of play. Indeed, the plan to sign new wingers was a top priority even before Elanga’s sale to Newcastle.
Aston Villa’s Jacob Ramsey and Liverpool’s Ben Doak are two other attacking players who have been discussed as potential options.
Ndoye ticks all the boxes for Forest’s recruitment team and is regarded as a player at the right age with room for even more improvement. Last season he scored eight goals and made four assists in Serie A for Bologna.
He also impressed at last year’s European Championship for his country, starting every match to help Switzerland reach the quarter-finals before defeat by England.
Adama is also regarded as a direct replacement for Elanga, with his pace a key weapon in his style of play.
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