Nottingham Forest made a whopping 21 new signings over the summer transfer window, but remarkably they still didn't manage to sign all of their targets, with a reliable source revealing one very surprising approach from the Tricky Trees.

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According to Italian journalist and transfer insider Fabrizio Romano, the Reds made an approach for Paulo Dybala this summer.

Romano revealed the news on his Here We Go Podcast, saying: “Nottingham Forest also did a call for Paulo Dybala on a free.

“Yes, they tried! If you remember at one point, Dybala was Inter but not closed, Roma but not agreed, Napoli but no agreement, so there were many possibilities and they tried to explore this possibility, saying ‘okay, what’s the situation with Dybala?’.

"This shows the ambition of Nottingham Forest, but in the end it was impossible. It was just a call and not a negotiation.”

Would have been a "world-class" signing

No matter what the outcome of Forest's season turns out to be, they cannot be faulted for their ambition since their arrival in the Premier League, and the signing of Dybala would have been an unbelievable statement of their intent to remain in the top flight for many years to come.

The Argentine forward became a free agent this summer after seven years at Juventus, and eventually the "world-class" player signed for Jose Mourinho's AS Roma in July.

Dybala scored an incredible 115 goals and delivered 48 assists over 293 appearances, with a goal contribution every 119 minutes for Juventus; and there is no doubt that he would've been warmly received at Forest, who are currently struggling for points and second from bottom in the Premier League.

The £222k-per-week goal machine has been lavished with praise by many observers, with writer Sascha Pisani claiming that Dybala is "a joy to watch" and "a nightmare for defenders".

Forest spent more than £150m in their transfer window and signed more players than any other Premier League club, with Jesse Lingard, Morgan Gibbs-White, Renan Lodi, Emmanuel Dennis, Neco Williams, Omar Richards and Remo Freuler among those to join the squad.

Although the idea of Dybala signing for the Reds may seem farfetched, it shows the clear ambition of owner Evangelos Marinakis, and the City Ground faithful will surely have a lot to anticipate in upcoming transfer windows if the club can retain their top-flight status at the end of the season and show similar ambition in subsequent summers.