Nottingham Forest have had an exciting transfer window so far with 12 new signings joining the squad at the City Ground, and a new update has emerged on a potential transfer target.
What's the latest?
According to Portuguese newspaper Record (via Sport Witness), the Reds have submitted a €30m (£27m) bid for Goncalo Ramos, but the Benfica forward is not keen on a move to the Midlands club.
As per the report, Forest are keen to complete a deal for the player following the Champions League play-offs, which take place during the last week of the transfer window, but the 21-year-old is interested in finding a move elsewhere.
Imagine him & Awoniyi
Whether or not the reports are true that Ramos doesn't want a move to the City Ground, he would still be a great addition to strengthen the attacking threat for Forest as they set out on their long-awaited return to the Premier League this weekend.
Steve Cooper is reportedly keen to add another striker before the transfer window slams shut in just under four weeks' time, and signing the Portuguese gem could be major coup for the Reds in their pursuit to retain their top-flight status.
Forest have already acquired the services of former Union Berlin centre-forward Taiwo Awoniyi, who had a fantastic 2021/22 season in the Bundesliga, scoring 17 goals and delivering one assist to be crowned the club's top scorer for the campaign, also posting a shot accuracy of 54%.
They could now bring in a player who could perfectly compliment their £17m man, with Ramos playing in the second striker role (32) almost as many times as he has at centre-forward (37), meaning that Cooper could form a deadly strike partnership which could cause a lot of trouble for opponents.
The 21-year-old showcased his qualities and talent with Benfica last season, demonstrating that he could be the perfect profile of player that Cooper would like to bring to the City Ground.
Across 29 league appearances, Ramos scored seven goals, delivered one assist and created three big chances, taking 1.9 shots and winning 3.2 duels per game.
Football scout Jacek Kulig claimed that the young talent is “incredibly prolific” and even declared that Ramos has similar attributes to Liverpool forward Roberto Firmino in his assessment of the player, noting that his ideal role is a deep-lying forward who enjoys progressing the ball, just like the Brazilian.
Therefore, if Cooper can have Ramos coming from a deeper position in the pitch to deliver goalscoring opportunities for Awoniyi, the 42-year-old could strike gold with this prospective signing and develop an attacking formula which can help Forest to retain their Premier League status.
The City Ground hierarchy have work to do to convince Ramos to join the club this summer, as otherwise they could risk missing out on their opportunity to add another potent forward, especially if they wait until the last week of the transfer window to try and seal his signature.