Nottingham Forest could be set to dip into the free agent market for a former Premier League defender…
What’s the word?
According to the Daily Mail, former Tottenham Hotspur man Serge Aurier has already undergone his medical at the Midlands club and looks set to sign.
The 29-year-old is a free agent and is seen as cover for both full-back positions. Another of their defensive summer signings, Omar Richards, was recently stuck down with a long-term injury, prompting the Reds to go into the market yet again for Aurier.
He will sign a one-year contract with the option of a further year, although Forest are reportedly still in the market for further defensive signings.
An accident waiting to happen
Aurier has not had a stellar Premier League career, despite featuring 77 times for Spurs.
He was shipped off due to his lack of defensive credentials and was often likely to commit a foolish foul or make a costly mistake, such as the one which led to Manchester City's winning goal in the 2021 Carabao Cup final.
In what seemed like it would be his final season in England during 2020/21, he featured just 19 times in the league but still managed to give away one penalty and make three errors leading to shots.
His defensive figures are suggestive of a disruptive influence, but not a technically sufficient defender. The £19k-per-week dud can poke the ball free but struggles to actually regain it, outlined in just 0.1 possession won per 90.
One might perhaps look to his offensive statistics to try and justify his potential acquisition, but with just two goals and three assists during a 2020/21 season in which a host of defenders recorded more goal contributions than him (Vladimir Coufal, Lucas Digne, Andy Robertson and more), it makes for disappointing reading.
He lost possession 14 times per match and offered an accurate cross percentage of just 29%. Aurier can certainly provide ample cover on both flanks, but it is certainly not the quality of cover that Forest will require.
It is therefore no surprise to see the 29-year-old previously being labelled “well and truly useless” by journalist and Spurs fan Greg Krieg, having also been slammed for some "dreadful" defending during his time at Tottenham by Sky Sports pundit Roy Keane.
Cooper should steer well clear of this rogue full-back with suspect defensive ability and insufficient offensive output to justify it.
History suggests that Aurier would make more mistakes than his signing would be worth, and it could be detrimental in Forest's bid to survive in the top flight.