Nottingham Forest are believed to have made an approach to sign Atalanta defender, Merih Demiral, according to reports in Italy.

What's the word?

As per TUTTOmercatoWEB, Steve Cooper's side are said to have made an initial loan offer for the Turkey international, with the proposal said to include an obligation to buy for a fee of around 28m (£25m).

The report goes on to add, however, that while the Serie A outfit are seemingly open to negotiations regarding the 24-year-old, the player himself is unconvinced at present at the prospect of making the move to the City Ground.

Cook upgrade

This comes amid uncertainty surrounding the future of current Forest man, Steve Cook, with the experienced centre-back believed to be attracting interest from a number of Championship clubs, after falling down the pecking order under Cooper of late.

The former Bournemouth skipper - who joined the Garibaldi a year ago - has failed to start any of the last six Premier League games, having notably been part of the much-changed side that was 'torn apart' in the 4-1 FA Cup defeat to second tier strugglers Blackpool, as per Nottinghamshire Live's Sarah Clapson.

As such, Cooper and co could well find a notable upgrade by turning to the aforementioned Demiral before the deadline, with the former Juventus ace able to help strengthen a backline that has already shipped 34 top-flight goals this season.

The 6 foot 4 "monster" - as lauded by journalist Josh Wright - has showcased his defensive prowess for Gian Piero Gasperini's side of late, having averaged 1.8 tackles and 1.2 interceptions from his 17 league appearances this season, with Cook averaging just 0.7 and 1.0 for the same two metrics, respectively, from his 12 top-flight outings.

Equally, Demiral has also illustrated his commanding brilliance as he ranks in the top 3% among those in his position in Europe for aerial duels won, as well as in the top 10% for interceptions, while Cook ranks in just the top 22% and the bottom 65% for those two metrics.

That should indicate that Forest would be making an instant improvement to their backline if they can convince the Turkish titan to make the move to England in the coming hours, with such a deal no doubt set to heighten the club's chances of survival.