Nottingham Forest closing in on Man City midfielder James McAtee | OneFootball

Nottingham Forest are on the cusp of finalising a deal to sign Manchester City attacking midfielder James McAtee, according to Fabrizio Romano.

Negotiations between both clubs are progressing at a decent pace, but there’s no final agreement yet.

McAtee has been told that he is surplus to requirements this summer and is one of a few players the Cityzens are looking to sell this month.

Since City made McAtee available for transfer, several clubs across Europe have inquired about conditions for a deal, but Forest look set to beat the competition.

Bundesliga side Eintracht Frankfurt have been keeping a close eye on McAtee’s situation, and their interest dates all the way back to January.

However, they never formalised their interest with an official proposal, leaving the door wide open for Forest to swoop in.

McAtee is a versatile midfielder who can cover a number of roles in the middle of the park. He can play as an attacking eight or number ten. He can also play out wide if his skill set is required there.

He’s the sort of player that gives Nuno Espirito Santo more tactical flexibility, and the Tricky Trees are moving fast to get a deal over the line and avoid any last-minute hijacks.

Forest have lost Danilo to Botafogo and Lewis O’Brien to Wrexham, so they are looking to bolster their options in the middle of the park.

Forest also explored moves for AC Milan’s Yunus Musah and wantaway Juventus ace Douglas Luiz, but McAtee has become their priority target.

McAtee found playing time hard to come by last season. He featured 27 times across all competitions and contributed seven goals.

Three of those goals came in the Premier League, where he started in just three of his 15 appearances.

McAtee was part of Lee Carsley’s England Under-21 side this summer.

He captained the Young Lions to a successful European Championship title defence and chipped in an assist in the final against Germany.

The Englishman chose to link up with Carsley’s troops rather than join Man City in the Club World Cup.