Nottingham Forest are going to need to step it up if they are to have any chance of surviving in the Premier League over the second half of the season as they have spent the majority of their return to the top flight in the relegation zone.

Indeed, the Tricky Trees were unbeaten in four of their last five league fixtures before the World Cup break which has given them a slight push up the table and they are currently just one point away from safety outside of the bottom three.

Steve Cooper will be hoping that his team can pick up where they left off in terms of their consistent form when they return to action after Christmas as they will face a difficult clash with Manchester United at Old Trafford on the 27th of December.

Despite the promising performances displayed over the most recent fixtures, there is no doubt that the Forest boss and Evangelos Marinakis will be hatching a master plan to secure survival in the Premier League by acquiring the services of more signings in the January transfer window.

Forest spent £150m over the summer on 22 new signings but Cooper has struggled to get the newly built team connecting on the pitch on most occasions, so a few new additions when the window opens in the new year will likely be on the agenda.

One player who has been repeatedly linked with a move to Trentside over the last few months is Senegal and Salernitana ace Boulaye Dia, a player who could be a season-changing signing for the Garibaldi Reds.

Over 14 Serie A appearances this season so far, the Villarreal-owned striker has scored six goals, registered two assists and created one big chance, as well as averaging 1.1 shots on goal and 2.7 duels per game, and Dia is not only impressing at club level.

The Senegalese striker is representing his country at the World Cup in Qatar and ended the AFCON champions' goal drought in their second group stage clash with Qatar with a wonderful strike to open the scoring in the 3-1 victory.

Over two World Cup appearances, the talented £10m striker has completed 100% of his long balls and 50% of his dribbles, as well as averaging two shots on goal and winning four duels per game, proving that he has been a huge presence in the Senegal team during the tournament.

With that being said, if Nottingham Forest can secure a deal for Dia it would be a major coup and a great piece of business for the club as they attempt to approach games with a more convincing attacking threat in the second half of the season.