Former Premier League midfielder Danny Murphy has reservations about Nottingham Forest’s pursuit of Gio Reyna with the Borussia Dortmund starlet in advanced talks to join Nuno Espirito Santo’s side on loan.
It is not that long since Giovanni Reyna and Jude Bellingham were viewed as equals at Signal Iduna Park. The respective careers of the midfield duo have gone in very different directions since then, of course, Bellingham now the driving force of Real Madrid as Reyna warms the bench, falling down the Dortmund pecking order following a relentless series of injuries.
HITC Football understands that Nottingham Forest are offering one of the most naturally-talented young playmakers in Europe the chance to rebuild his career at the City Ground.
Reyna has admirers in France, Spain and Italy. Forest are at the front of the queue, however, after entering advanced talks with the Sunderland-born America international.
But while there can be no doubts about the 21-year-old’s talent – former Dortmund coach Marco Rose insisted that his ‘unbelievable’ qualities made Reyna a ‘world-class’ talent in the making – Murphy has doubts about whether he is the man Nottingham Forest really need at the present moment.
Nottingham Forest near Gio Reyna deal with Dortmund
“He is a technically good player,” Murphy, once of Liverpool, Tottenham and England, tells talkSPORT (24 January, 11am). “But he’s not physically that great.
“They’ve got those types (already at Nottingham Forest), Morgan Gibbs-White and Anthony Elanga.”
Murphy also believes that Reyna is unlikely to ‘hit the ground running’ at Forest, having started only two games in all competitions for Dortmund so far in 2023/24. It may take a number of weeks for Reyna to hit his stride. And that is not exactly an ideal situation for a player brought in with only a few months of the season remaining.
But, on the other hand, if Reyna can rediscover the guile and the craft which made him one of the continent’s brightest young talents a few seasons back, Nottingham Forest could get their mitts on a genuine match-winner. And you can’t have too many of those in a relegation battle.
Erling Haaland rates him very highly
“He’s 17-and-a-half soon. At such a young age to be so calm on the ball and play for such a big team, it’s very fascinating to see how calm he is,” none other than Erling Haaland told ESPN back in 2020, having struck up a fearsome understanding with the then-teenage Reyna in black and yellow.
“He doesn’t care about anything. He just jumps right into it. He’s a top talent, and we’re lucky to have him here.
“The American Dream, I call him that.”
According to ESPN, Dortmund may consider letting Reyna go permanently for around £13 million.
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