Nottingham Forest fans will be excited to see what the squad looks like when the time comes for domestic football to take centre stage once again in August.
Right now, the majority of players are enjoying a well-deserved break, with Elliot Anderson still starring for the England under-21s at the European Championships in Slovakia.
Igor Jesus and Jair Cunha look like signing for Forest after the Club World Cup and they will definitely be joined by other new recruits before a ball is kicked in the new Premier League season.
With new recruits expected, Forest will have to offload a number of players this summer, and the hope will be that things can be reshuffled without the need for any star players to depart.
The likes of Josh Bowler and Emmanuel Dennis have no future, whilst Matt Turner looks set to join Lyon as the club looks to get rid of the players still on the books with zero chance of making the team.
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Lewis O’Brien wanted by Southampton and Birmingham
According to The Sun’s transfer guru Alan Nixon, the midfielder will be the subject of an auction between two EFL clubs, with Southampton and Birmingham both keen on the player.
The 26-year-old has no future at Forest, and after a string of loan spells away from the City Ground, he will be keen to put some roots down and kick on with his career elsewhere.
O’Brien made 14 Premier League appearances for Forest. He was in decent form before the World Cup during the 2022/23 campaign, but suffered with injury and illness that led to him being omitted from the 25-man squad for the second half of the campaign.
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It’s claimed that Forest are yet to decide on a transfer fee, although with one year to run on his existing deal, the chances of getting anything close to the £10 million they paid for him back look very slim.
O’Brien can count himself unlucky at Forest
When he arrived at Forest, it seemed as though the club were signing sensibly in the transfer market, with Ryan Yates admitting he’d been impressed with O’Brien when coming up against him in the second tier.
The midfielder has been surpassed by better players during his time at Forest. Still, that isn’t a slight on his ability and had he stayed fit during that maiden season back in the top-flight, he’d likely have been given more chances.
Moving to Southampton or Birmingham would likely give O’Brien a shot at reaching the Premier League again, with both clubs showing huge ambitions going into next season.
With PSR loitering in the background, Forest might have to accept a loss on O’Brien. However, if a couple of million can be obtained to let him go permanently, it would be better than keeping his wages on the books for another 12 months.