Nottingham Forest’s mega first January transfer could be blockbuster raid for Serie A gem with £30m price tag
Nottingham Forest boss Sean Dyche is looking to put his own stamp on his newly inherited squad this winter
Nottingham Forest are embroiled in a relegation battle in the Premier League and need to add some more quality to their squad. They turned to Sean Dyche as their head coach back in October following their decision to part ways with Ange Postecoglou. The ex-Burnley and Everton boss has since won eight of his first 19 games in charge.
The Reds are currently sat in 17th place in the table after 22 fixtures and they are five points above the relegation zone ahead of West Ham. They picked up a useful 0-0 draw at home to the league leaders Arsenal last time out. Next up is an away trip to SC Braga in the Europa League on Thursday night.
Nottingham Forest target Lorenzo Lucca deal
According to journalist Fabrizio Romano on X, Nottingham Forest are in talks with Napoli over a loan deal for striker Lorenzo Lucca. The reporter has added that they could insert an option to buy clause worth £30 million. His chances of a permanent transfer to the City Ground will depend on what league they are in next season as they aim to avoid the drop.
Lucca, 25, stands at a towering 6ft 7 and has made four caps for the Italy national team so far in his career. He joined his current club last year from Udinese but hasn’t been able to make the impact he would have hoped to with the Serie A giants. Therefore, a change of scene now to England this winter may well do him good.
The Turin-born man had spells with the likes of Torino and Palermo as a youngster before rocking up at Pisa in 2021. He went on to play 35 games for his former team and scored six goals before heading to Ajax on a temporary basis. Lucca then ended up at Udinese and found the net on 23 occasions in 75 outings during his time there before Napoli came calling.
Would Lorenzo Lucca be a good signing for Nottingham Forest?
Nottingham Forest would be taking a risk by bringing in Lucca considering he has never played in this country before. Nevertheless, he has proved that he knows how to score goals over in Italy. In addition, his height would give the Reds another dimension in attack and a plan B in matches.
If he joined Dyche’s side, he would provide some solid cover for the injured Chris Wood. He would battle it out with the likes of Igor Jesus and Taiwo Awoniyi for a place in their starting XI. They have let Arnaud Kalimuendo head out the exit door on loan to Eintracht Frankfurt which has left a vacancy to fill in their squad.
The fact Lucca’s move would initially be a loan one means they can take a look at him first before deciding whether to pursue a full-time swoop. If it doesn’t go to plan, he can head back to Napoli in the summer and pursue an opportunity somewhere else. He had found it hard to get into their team of late due to strong competition for places.
Nottingham Forest have had a tricky term to date and it has proved hard to balance their domestic duties with their European campaign. They would benefit from bringing in some more bodies over the coming weeks. The Reds have until the deadline on Monday 2nd February to get any final deals over the line.