Nottingham Forest have been linked with a move for Jamaal Lascelles and now a new update has emerged that could be a huge setback for the club in their pursuit of the player.

What's the latest?

According to Chronicle Live, the Newcastle United captain is keen to remain at St James' Park despite the transfer interest from his former club Nottingham Forest.

As per the report, Lascelles is claimed to be dedicated to fighting for his place in the Newcastle team over the season ahead and is expected to earn more game time over the Christmas period when fixtures will be congested.

It's a blow for Cooper

There is no doubt that the news that Lascelles is keen to stay at Newcastle United will be a blow for Steve Cooper as the manager will be hoping to strengthen his squad during the January transfer window.

Nottingham Forest are currently 18th in the Premier League table and are just one point shy of climbing out of the bottom three, so securing the signature of some new additions who can make a genuine positive impact on the team would be highly advantageous.

Although the Tricky Trees did bolster their depth in defence during the summer with the signing of centre-backs Moussa Niakhate, Loic Bade and Willy Boly, the upcoming transfer window would be the perfect opportunity to add a centre-back with more pace alongside Premier League experience.

Lascelles has become a huge presence at St James' Park since leaving Forest in 2015, tallying up 220 appearances for the Magpies and became captain of the club in 2016 after being selected by former manager Rafael Benitez to lead the team.

Despite falling out of favour, Eddie Howe has remained loyal to Lascelles and has always had high praise for the 29-year-old hailing the defender "superb" in an interview about his impact in the dressing room:

"His attitude has been spot on. He’s obviously our captain and he’s led like a captain even in a difficult moment for him because he would want to play every game."

"I always think that’s a true test of a leader is in the difficult moments and I think Jamaal has been absolutely superb – he’s been positive in the changing room before the game, during training – I cannot speak highly enough of his reaction to that."

However, it was reported last month that Newcastle have listed the skipper as available on the transfer market and the club would command a fee of around £10m to part ways with the player.

With that being said, the signing of Lascelles would be a great piece of business for Forest, however, it will likely depend on Newcastle's stance in January and Forest's offer that will determine whether there is a possibility to secure his services over the second half of the season.