Nottingham Forest have already identified a possible replacement for Anthony Elanga - and it is someone that Newcastle United know well.
Forest are beginning to prepare for life without Elanga as the Swedish international’s move to Newcastle United progresses closer and closer to completion. Elanga has travelled to the north east to undergo a medical and sign a contract after Nottingham Forest accepted a bid of £52m plus add-ons for him.
Newcastle United, after twelve months of tracking Elanga, have finally got their man who, once his move to the club is signed and sealed, will join up with his new teammates at Darsley Park as they prepare for the new season. Elanga’s move to Tyneside will strengthen Eddie Howe’s forward options and add strength and depth to a squad that will hope to compete on multiple fronts next season.
Forest, meanwhile, will now enter the market in search of Elanga’s replacement. Having banked a sizeable profit for the winger, minus a sell-on fee due to Manchester United, the Tricky Trees have funds at their disposal to sign at least one winger.
Nottingham Forest ‘target’ Anthony Elanga replacement
Forest still don’t know if they will be playing Conference League or Europa League football next season and are awaiting the results of Lyon’s appeal over their demotion to Ligue 2 to discover their fate. Which competition they end up playing in could have big ramifications on the calibre of players they are able to attract to the City Ground this summer.
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Bakayoko, meanwhile, has been valued at over £30m by PSV after scoring 12 goals in all competitions last season for Peter Bosz’s side and has recently spoken about his sky-high footballing ambitions.
“If I were to leave Eindhoven, it would only be to a club that plays for the prizes just like PSV,” Bakayoko told reporters in the Netherlands.
“Becoming a champion is what I want and win the Champions League. I have the qualities for that.
“I'm ready for the top. But PSV is also a top club, especially if many players from last season stay. And it's nice here.”
The 22-year-old was also reportedly on Newcastle United’s list of alternatives to Elanga this summer, with Borussia Dortmund’s Karim Adeyemi and West Ham’s Mohammed Kudus also identified as options if they could not get a deal for Elanga over the line.
Those deals, though, look difficult for any club to do this summer with Newcastle United, fortunately, seemingly avoiding being drawn into long negotiations for any of them. Adeyemi, following Jamie Gittens’s move from Dortmund to Chelsea, seems destined to stay at Signal Iduna Park this summer whilst Kudus has reportedly chosen the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium as his next destination.
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