Forest set to wrap up double swoop
REDS CLOSING IN ON STRIKER AND KEEPER FOR FIRST SIGNINGS OF THE SUMMER WINDOW
NOTTINGHAM Forest are on track to complete their first summer signings with Dean Henderson and Taiwo Awoniyi close to joining the Premier League club.
Striker Awoniyi has said his goodbyes to Union Berlin teammates, according to reports in Germany and should join for a fee understood to be around £17.5m, which would significantly eclipse the club record signing of Joao Carvalho for £13.2m.
In what was a breakthrough season, Awoniyi had 21 goal involvements in all competitions in 2021-22. He scored 15 goals and registered two assists in the Bundesliga.
Awoniyi joined Liverpool in 2015, after previously representing Imperial Academy in Nigeria, for a fee of £400,000 but never made a competitive appearance for the Reds due to work permit complications.
He was loaned out seven times across Europe during his six-year stay at Anfield but after a successful 2020-21 campaign with Berlin, he made his loan spell permanent in a move valued at £6.5m.
Forest will hope the arrival of Awoniyi, which is likely to happen first, gets the transfer ball rolling. They are still on track to complete the loan signing of Manchester United goalkeeper Dean Henderson, although it remains unclear if the deal will include an option to buy, something which Forest were pushing for strongly as recently as the weekend.
They also have strong interest in Wolves forward Morgan Gibbswhite, as well as Liverpool fullback Neco Williams and Manchester City right-back Issa Kabore.
Tottenham Hotspur look set to win the race for Djed Spence given they can offer Champions League football to the Middlesbrough right-back.
Meanwhile, Philip Zinckernagel
will not be returning next season following his successful loan spell.
The Watford midfielder is understood to be in Athens putting pen to paper on a three-year deal to join Olympiacos. The Denmark international scored seven goals and registered 10 assists in 50 games last term as Forest won promotion to the Premier League.
Plenty of Reds fans will have hoped the 27-year-old would return to the City Ground following promotion and although he will join a club owned by Evangelos Marinakis, it will not be Forest. Zinckernagel will link up with a familiar face in Carvalho.