Nottingham Forest have been hard at work this summer, and this weekend the newly-promoted Premier League side announced the signing of French defender Giulian Biancone.
The 22-year-old fullback signs from Troyes with Steve Cooper landing the defender as a replacement for Djed Spence, who looks set to join Tottenham from Middlesbrough after an incredible loan spell with Forest last season, with Biancone having some big shoes to fill.
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Coming through the likes of Club Brugge and AS Monaco, Biancone has a fine footballing education and could become a star for Forest next season, with the Garibaldi starting to build an impressive squad for the Premier League after the signings of Taiwo Awoniyi and Dean Henderson.
Indeed, with Bundesliga defender Moussa Niakhate also reportedly close to signing, Forest’s potential XI for next season could be an exciting one, and here’s what Cooper’s side could end up looking like if they land their dream targets.
Toffolo joins Biancone, Niakhate and Henderson in Premier League-quality defence
Two of the three players Forest have signed this summer will likely start in defence next season in Biancone and Henderson, yet according to reports, Cooper is not stopping just yet in improving the defence.
As mentioned, Niakhate is reportedly on the verge of moving to the City Ground, with the Mainz captain adding a lot of quality to the defence as well as giving Forest another option at left-back, which in our XI is occupied by Huddersfield Town star Harry Toffolo.
The Athletic report that Forest are interested in the Terriers star, and after an incredible season from the fullback last year in the Championship, it makes a lot of sense why Cooper is interested in signing Toffolo for the Premier League.
England international Maitland-Niles joins Forest from Arsenal
Spence might have been the loan star of the Championship last year, but for Forest, James Garner was also a massive influence in their play-off-winning squad, with the Manchester United talent spending 18 months in Nottingham away from Old Trafford.
Whilst re-signing Garner would be the dream midfield addition for Forest, reports seem to suggest that Erik Ten Hag has plans for the talented playmaker, meaning that Cooper must look for an alternative to partner Ryan Yates in the centre of the park.
And according to reports, Arsenal’s Ainsley Maitland-Niles is on Forest’s radar, with the England international set to leave north London this summer for good, and for the newly-promoted Premier League side, the 24-year-old is the perfect signing and replacement for Garner.
Kean partners Awoniyi and Johnson in frighting Forest attack
Awoniyi joined Forest last month in a club-record deal, yet the most important move the club arguably made in the attacking department was tying Brennan Johnson down to a new contract, with the Wales international arguably Cooper’s best player.
Indeed, the pair could play together up-front, but in our XI, we have Johnson playing behind the strikers in the attacking midfield role with Awoniyi being partnered by Everton outcast Moise Kean, who is reportedly wanted by the Nottingham side.
A £27m signing in 2019, Kean never adapted to life with Everton and has been looking to leave ever since, and given Cooper’s outstanding record with developing young players, the 22-year-old could become a frighting striker for Forest alongside Awoniyi with Johnson supporting the pair.
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