‘Could be the difference’ – Nottingham Forest in race for in-demand 26-year-old: The verdict | OneFootball

This article is part of Football League World’s ‘The Verdict‘ series, which provides personal opinions from the FLW writers regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more…

Nottingham Forest still need to try and bolster their firepower upfront ahead of the new Championship season as Chris Hughton aims to enhance his squad.

The latest reports from journalist Ekrem Konur, Nottingham Forest have now entered the race to secure a move for Stade Rannais forward M’baye Niang this summer.

It is believed that the likes of Celtic, Venezia and Anderlecht are interested in making a move for the 26-year-old as well so it will not be an easy move for Forest to pull off.

The forward has spent time with the likes of Watford, Torino and AC Milan in his career to date and he has managed to 92 appearances for Stade Rannais during his time with the French club. However, he was allowed to leave on loan to Al-Ahli last term for a short period.

So with Forest in the race for Niang, we asked our FLW writers whether they feel he would be a good addition for Hughton’s side…

Jacob Potter

This could be a smart signing by Forest if they can get an agreement in place.

Niang is a player that they clearly rate highly, and he could be the ideal competition for Lewis Grabban this season, as I’ve not been completely convinced that Lyle Taylor is the player that Forest need to challenge higher up the Championship table.

Forest won’t have it all their way when it comes to trying to negotiate a deal to sign Niang, with Celtic and Anderlecht being just some of the teams interested in landing his signature.

They’ll have to offer him first-team assurances over a starting spot this season, otherwise they might struggle in their efforts to sign him.

Nottingham Forest quiz: Have any of these 25 players ever scored against the Reds?

1 of 25

Has Matej Vydra ever scored a goal against Nottingham Forest?

Yes

No

Adam Jones

If you studied Nottingham Forest in depth last season, you could tell the thing they painfully needed was more of an attacking threat.

Scoring just 37 goals in 46 league games last term, this is the sort of attacking record that could relegate teams and they can no longer rely on their defence to bail them out against next season.

With this, an injection of firepower up top is exactly what the East Midlands side need and someone of M’Baye Niang’s calibre is likely to provide that in the Championship.

Despite not transforming into the world-class player we were all expecting him to be from his early days at AC Milan, his ten goals in the French top division during the 2019/20 campaign shows what he can do after a disappointing loan spell at Al-Ahli that followed after.

The fact he can also operate out on the wing gives Chris Hughton another option, especially if they cash in on 20-year-old wide man Brennan Johnson.

All of these things combined would make this arrival a major coup for Forest, depending on his price tag and wages.

The Championship side’s budget seems to be limited after only bringing in backup goalkeeper Ethan Horvath, so it remains to be seen whether they can match Rennes’ valuation of the 26-year-old.

If they can, Nottingham Forest fans should be getting excited about this potential arrival.

Ben Wignall

Despite not featuring much for Stade Rennais or Al-Ahli last season, Niang still retains a lot of talent and it’s a surprise to see him being linked with a Championship side.

In the season prior, Niang scored 10 times in France’s top flight, which is no mean feat in itself, so there’s clearly a goalscorer there somewhere but it’s about doing it on a consistent basis for the Senegal international.

Considering Niang has experience in England though following a loan spell with Watford in the Premier League, it may be a realistic avenue for Forest to explore and of course they are in need of strikers with just Lyle Taylor and Lewis Grabban on the books.

At the age of 26, Niang may not have reached his prime yet and if he can get his head down and settled somewhere like Forest, he could be the difference between the club making the play-offs next season.

It all rests on whether Forest’s interest is concrete though – but rest assured they definitely need fresh attacking options and Niang would definitely fit the bill.