Nottingham Forest will sell Joe Worrall if the price is right, but Burnley and Sheffield United have been scared off by the Championship club’s £10 million demand, according to the Sun (23 August, page 61).
With a watertight defence providing the backbone for a play-off charge under Sabri Lamouchi, the departure of academy graduate Worrall would be a major blow to Forest’s promotion hopes in 2021.
The commanding centre-half bleeds Garibaldi red and, with 36-year-old captain Michael Dawson no longer able to play every three games, his sale would leave a massive hole at the heart of Lamouchi’s team.
According to the Sun, however, Forest are still willing to listen to offers.
But that does not mean that Worrall has played his final game for the two-time European champions.
The report adds that, unless Forest reduce that prohibitive £10 million fee, Premier League duo Burnley and Sheffield United will look elsewhere for defensive reinforcements.
Perhaps Chris Wilder and Sean Dyche think £10 million is just too much for a defender who could, more often than not, find himself stuck on the bench at Bramall Lane or Turf Moor.
John Egan has signed a new contract at Sheffield United after all and it is far from certain that Worrall would be able to adapt to Wilder’s unique three-man, overlapping centre-back system.
If Burnley manage to fight off the vultures circling around England international James Tarkowski, then Worrall would more than likely find himself stuck behind the Clarets’ number six and Ben Mee in the pecking order.
The Mail have suggested that Burnley could try to barter down the price-tag by offering Ben Gibson in a £4 million player-plus-cash deal, although it remains to be seen whether Forest will play ball.
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