Nottingham Forest deadline day signing Luca Netz is fulfilling a childhood dream by moving to the Premier League.
That’s according to BILD. The newspaper cover the defender today and his dream being realised, after he turned down Manchester City aged just 15.
Netz joined Nottingham Forest on deadline day of the January transfer window in a move that very much came out of nowhere. Reports earlier in the day had linked an unnamed English club with a potential move.
It soon emerged that club was Nottingham Forest, who quickly wrapped up a €2.5m deal for the 22-year-old. That was certainly surprising for some, given Netz was once one of the highest rated young prospects in Germany. Injury issues and instability at Borussia Mönchengladbach have stalled him somewhat, though.
Now he’s looking to kick on at Nottingham Forest, in the Premier League. That’s a dream move for him, something he revealed in an interview almost two years ago.
“I had an offer from Manchester City when I was 15, but I turned it down,” he said.
“The fact is, the Premier League is a childhood dream of mine. I can’t say today whether it will ever happen. Currently, I’m very happy in Gladbach.”
Mönchengladbach had been somewhat forced into the deal, with Netz’s deal set to expire in the summer. That left January as their last option to make money on their youth product.
They, therefore, were happy to take Nottingham Forest’s €2.5m offer when it came on deadline day. That was better than letting him depart on a free transfer in a few months, something Sporting director Rouven Schröder was keen to emphasise.
“Luca has developed from a talented youngster into an established Bundesliga professional at Borussia,” he added.
“It had become clear in recent months that our time together would come to an end in the summer. This was therefore the last financially viable opportunity to complete a transfer that would benefit all parties.”