League Two Cheltenham Town are braced for offers for striker Mo Eisa – Nottingham Forest should be among the Championship clubs watching him.
Nottingham Forest would have known what they were getting when they sacked a purist and hired a pragmatist at the turn of the year.
Under Mark Warburton, Forest were impressive going forward at times but left the door far too open at the back. His replacement Aitor Karanka, however, has built his managerial reputation upon a strong defence and, while Forest now look much better at the back, they have lost a bit of spark at the other end.
The East Midland giants have failed to score in seven of the 11 Championship games since Karanka arrived at the City Ground, but it’s not just the tactics that are the problem.
Forest appear to have a lack of natural goalscorers with youngster Ben Brereton hitting just three in the league and the experienced Daryl Murphy without a goal in 10 games.
So with Gloucester Live reporting that a number of Championship clubs are following the League Two goalscoring revelation Mo Eisa, surely Forest should be among them.
Cheltenham Town took a punt and signed the Sudanese 23-year-old from non-league Greenwich Borough last summer and the risk is reaping rewards. A brace in the 3-0 win against Swindon Town on Saturday means Eisa has now hit 20 this season and this most natural of goalscorers is attracting interest from higher up the pyramid.
Cardiff City are keen on a player who is likely to become the biggest export in Cheltenham’s history, beating the current record of £400,000, with Gloucester Live believing he could cost around £800,000.
And Eisa, though still a raw talent, would give Forest some much needed pace, movement and instinctive finishing in attack. For less than £1 million, surely he is worth the punt.
After all, it worked out well for Cheltenham.
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