Dan Ndoye’s agent has lifted the lid on how ‘serious club’ Nottingham Forest won the race for the winger this summer.
Ndoye put pen to paper on a five-year deal at the City Ground from Bologna in July. The Reds reportedly splashed out in the region of £34 million to secure his services.
Serie A champions Napoli were keen on snapping up the Switzerland international, having previously had their eye on him in January. But the emergence of Forest as potential suitors ‘changed everything’, according to Lodovico Spinosi.
In a translated interview relayed by Il Napolista, Ndoye’s representative told Radio Crc: “Manna (Giovanni Manna, Napoli sporting director) tried to sign him in January, and at that point in time Nottingham didn't yet exist. After that, there was another opportunity this summer, but the process took too long.
“In the end, when a financially high-level club like the English club presents itself, everything suddenly changes. Napoli completed the deals for Noa Lang, Beukema, and Lucca first. I understand the difficulties the club faced, but something different could have been done to bring the player to Naples.
“The timing is certainly questionable. If the negotiations with Napoli had begun 20 days or a month earlier, the outcome could have been different.”
Since linking up with the Reds, Ndoye has started the first three games of the Premier League season for Nuno Espirito Santo’s side. He scored on his debut, against Brentford, then registered an assist in the following game as Forest came from behind to draw 1-1 at Crystal Palace.
Nuno’s men were thumped 3-0 by West Ham United last weekend, in their final outing before the international break. But the aim for the Reds this season is to continue on an upward curve as they look to challenge on four fronts.
Spinosi is confident Ndoye will have a key role to play. Discussing his client, he added: “He's adapting to a different league, superior to ours.
“It's a shame for the Italian league to have lost a player like him, but those are the laws of the transfer market. When a player like him excels, he goes straight to the market.
“Today, Ndoye is at a top club in the world's top league. Nottingham Forest is a serious club that has invested heavily to compete. After a year of acclimatization, the player has exploded in Italy, and I'm sure he'll do well in England too.”
Ndoye left Bologna having made 75 appearances for the club following his switch from Basel in 2023. The 2024/25 campaign was a particularly impressive one for the 24-year-old during his time in Italy as he scored the winning goal in the Coppa Italia final and was a regular in the Champions League.
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