Crystal Palace considered bid for £27m-rated Nottingham Forest star after contract terminated
Nottingham Forest enjoyed a refreshing change of pace during the transfer window, with just 11 new players being added to the squad.
Going in the opposite direction – including the loans who returned to their parent clubs and out-of-contract players – the Reds managed to ship 24 out.
That represented quality work done by the club and now there will be less of a ‘bomb squad’ this season which has been evident in the past.
Crucially, Forest managed to keep hold of all of their star players, with Morgan Gibbs-White, Murillo and Callum Hudson-Odoi all remaining on Trentside.
Newcastle made a late move for Anthony Elanga on deadline day but Forest managed to fend off that interest from the Magpies.
Another player who has some interest was Neco Williams, with Atalanta making a play to sign him – and it appears they weren’t the only ones.
John Percy says Aston Villa wanted Nottingham Forest star Neco Williams
The Wales international signed for Forest from Liverpool for £17 million in the summer of 2022 with very big boots to fill.
Forest knew that signing Djed Spence permanently was unobtainable and Williams was the man tasked with filling the void.
During his first season at Forest, he was forced to play second fiddle to Serge Aurier a lot of the time but last season he did showcase his quality.
The Telegraph scribe John Percy has now claimed that a team in the Champions League were keen to sign the player who was the subject of interest this summer.
He told the Forest Focus podcast: “It was West Ham being linked, wasn’t it? I was out in Spain when that story came out and that was shut down quite quickly, I don’t know if it was that serious.
“I know Aston Villa were considering him very early in the window as a possible option but obviously that never came to anything as well.
“It just shows you that he is highly rated as a Premier League player, he just needs to stay consistent and I think he will be okay.”
Although Williams hasn’t started the current campaign overly strong, Forest were wise to stand firm on the £27 million valuation.
The Reds must get into a habit of standing firm on the club’s better players and this stance is definitely a positive one.
Williams will need to improve though. With options aplenty now at full-back, he will want to hit full speed pretty quickly as the 2024/25 season takes shape.
The 23-year-old is still young and as a result, he can be afforded a little run of inconsistent form.
Now, the challenge for the player is to stay calm, keep working hard and start improving at both ends of the pitch when he does play for Forest.
