Curtis Davies has been brilliant for Derby County – but can Michael Dawson have a similar impact at Championship rivals Nottingham Forest.
It is hardly a well kept secret that Nottingham Forest want to bring prodigal son Michael Dawson back to the City Ground this summer, 13 years after he left the East Midlands to get his big break at Tottenham Hotspur.
And while Dawson would be a very popular addition among Forest supporters, time will tell whether the old adage ‘never go back’ rings true.
The former England defender will be a free agent when his Hull City contract expires but he is 34 years of age now. Though Dawson would bring experience to a Forest defence that still has a fair few off days even under the pragmatic Aitor Karanka, his best days are long gone and he hardly enjoyed a stellar campaign with Hull.
But as Nottingham Forest’s bitter rivals showed last summer, age is just a number and it should not be understated just what an impact a grizzled, old-school centre-back can have on a squad.
Derby brought in Curtis Davies last summer from Hull after their relegation from the Premier League and the 33-year-old rolled back the years with a superb individual campaign at the heart of Gary Rowett’s defence.
Davies has been almost impenetrable all season and his man-marking job on Aleksandar Mitrovic in the first-leg of the play-off semi-final was one of the finest defensive performances of the entire campaign.
Dawson is just one year older and, if he can replicate the impact made by Davies down Brian Clough Way, Forest could be sitting here next season toasting an inspired deal.
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