Nottingham Forest Could Sign £32 ‘Powerhouse’ To Replace Shelvey

Nottingham Forest will be hoping to have a much more settled Premier League campaign after surviving their struggle at the bottom of the table last season.

The Tricky Trees were just four points clear of the relegation zone in 16th, but with experience of the top flight they should be able to improve upon and learn from mistakes made in the previous campaign.

Steve Cooper led his team out in their return to action last weekend against one of their most challenging fixtures of the season at the Emirates against Arsenal, where they suffered their first defeat but showed promising signs in the 2-1 loss.

The Forest boss claimed in his post-match interview: "Lots of our team are still getting up to speed. It was always going to be a really tough challenge.

"What we didn’t do quite right was compete strong enough within the duels and show enough quality on the turnovers."

There is also no doubt that Cooper believes there is more work to be done in improving the quality in the squad by acquiring new signings, something he also made clear during his post-match analysis.

Who are Nottingham Forest's transfer targets?

Nottingham Forest have already completed the signings of Matt Turner, Anthony Elanga and Chris Wood who they were obligated to make permanent after a six-month loan, but are continuing to identify new additions who can strengthen their presence and dominance on the pitch.

One player who has been consistently linked with a move to The City Ground is PSV Eindhoven midfielder Ibrahim Sangare, a player who is being courted by a number of big-hitters this summer.

ESPN Netherlands reported this week that Forest had lodged a bid for Sangare, whilst Liverpool, Bayern Munich and Paris Saint-Germain are also interested in snatching the PSV star's signature too – a deal that would cost interested parties €37m (£32m).

How good is Ibrahim Sangare?

There is no doubt that Forest would struggle to compete with the opportunities that their competitors could offer Sangare, with all three big presences on the European stage and serial trophy winners.

However, if the chance did arise for the Trentside club to snap up the services of Sangare this summer it would provide Cooper with a high-quality midfielder who would be a huge upgrade on Jonjo Shelvey in the deep-lying role in the centre of the pitch.

The Ivory Coast international is one of the hottest defensive midfield prospects in the Men's Next Eight Competitions – ranking in the top 20% of his positional peers per 90 minutes played for aerial duels won, clearances, blocks, touches, successful take-ons and progressive passes, as per FBref.

When comparing Sangare's output to Shelvey's last season, the 25-year-old comfortably outperformed his positional competitor in a number of attributes including pass completion (83.7% v 73.2%), percentage of dribblers tackled (57.5% v 10%) and shots in total per 90 minutes played (1.49 v 0.40).

It's clear, then, that this is a man who is far more ruthless in the tackle, as well as being a great deal more composed when in possession.

Beyond stronger attributes, Sangare – once hailed a "real powerhouse" by journalist Josh Bunting – would provide Cooper with a midfielder he can rely on to be available to play when needed, something he hasn't had from the former Newcastle United ace since his arrival at the club.

With that being said, the signing of Sangare would be a major coup for Nottingham Forest, providing Cooper with a real midfield enforcer who could make a huge impact on the performances over the season ahead.