Anthony Elanga is closing in on a move to Newcastle United, with Nottingham Forest set to be in need of a reshuffle to replace his talents.
While the deal is close to being agreed, Forest are still holding out for £60m for Elanga, potentially in the form of performance bonuses in addition to the £55m fee.
The deal was looking to be stalling, but Newcastle grew confident of signing Elanga as negotiations remained open throughout the process, leading to this £55m bid that has shifted the tide.
Of course, Evangelos Marinakis will now have the daunting task of trying to replace Elanga’s importance to the Forest squad, but some at the club could actually benefit from his departure.
Anthony Elanga during the Premier League clash between Nottingham Forest and West Ham United
Photo by MI News/NurPhoto via Getty Images
Winners of Anthony Elanga’s Nottingham Forest departure
Jota Silva
Although Jota Silva has been linked with Sporting back in Portugal, the departure of Elanga would leave him as the remaining option at the club to play on the right wing.
It was said that Jota was happy at Forest towards the end of the season, despite his lack of minutes, displaying an attitude that may just earn him some more opportunities from Nuno Espírito Santo if he is to stay at the club.
He’s well-liked within the squad, too, with Murillo naming Jota as his unsung hero of the season showing that his teammates are willing him to succeed. A replacement for Elanga will surely be brought in, but until that player is found, Jota could use the time to prove his worth.
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Evangelos Marinakis
The Forest owner won’t have wanted to sell one of his prized assets, but there’s no getting around how beneficial a significant fee like the one Newcastle are paying is to the long-term health of the club.
Forest didn’t need to sell Elanga or any of Nuno’s top stars in terms of any immediate PSR concerns, but the scars of the previous breach mean that safeguarding for the future is hard to argue with.
Alongside this, Marinakis now has the chance to show that Elanga can be replaced in a way that benefits the club, just as he did when Brennan Johnson departed for Tottenham.
Losers of Anthony Elanga’s Nottingham Forest exit
Nuno Espirito Santo watches his team in action.
Photo by Alex Broadway/Getty Images
Nuno Espírito Santo
While it was Chris Wood scoring the goals for Forest last season, Elanga racked up 18 goal contributions himself to stake his claim as the Reds’ most important attacker.
He also offered tactical flexibility to Espírito Santo, who would occasionally play Elanga through the middle alongside Wood in more defensive shapes.
Like the fans, Espírito Santo will understand how valuable a sizeable sale is to the club, but he’ll be understandably concerned about replacing one of his most important cogs going into next season.
Chris Wood
Elanga’s assisting ability has come on tremendously since his arrival at the City Ground, with Wood being the most regular benefactor of this.
Anthony Elanga has assisted Chris Wood 10 times in the Premier League since the start of last season, that's the most of any one assister-goalscorer combination in the division in that timeframe.
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Most memorably, Elanga assisted Wood twice in the 7-0 win over Brighton, as well as teeing Morgan Gibbs-White up to make it a hat-trick of assists on the day.
Between them, Gibbs-White and Callum Hudson-Odoi cannot match Elanga’s creativity which will be a major concern for Wood especially, who thrives on being the final piece of a move rather than creating for himself.
When replacing Elanga, then, Marinakis must find somebody who can take on this assisting burden to keep Wood firing next season.