Little was known about Tyler Bindon when Nottingham Forest signed him in January, but the New Zealand international will arrive for pre-season amid plenty of excitement.
When it was announced that Forest had signed Bindon on deadline day, the initial confusion from Reds fans quickly turned to excitement, given how highly Reading supporters spoke of him.
New Zealand football experts also hailed Bindon as an incredibly talented young defender, which has only continued to be proven right as Bindon won Reading’s Player of the Year for his commanding role in their unexpected play-off push.
The 20-year-old will arrive at Forest for the first time for pre-season, but plans beyond this are already being discussed.
Photo by John Cripps/MI News/NurPhoto via Getty Images
Photo by John Cripps/MI News/NurPhoto via Getty Images
Nottingham Forest have loan plans for Tyler Bindon
His maturity was on show as Bindon penned an emotional farewell to Reading fans, but he is perhaps not considered quite ready to truly impact Nuno Espirito Santo’s side just yet.
According to The Telegraph, Forest will look to give Bindon more experience on another loan, but this time with a step up in competition.
The report said: “Tyler Bindon, the New Zealand international, was signed for £700,000 from Reading in January before he was loaned back to the League One club. He will join Forest for pre-season and is viewed as a young player with big potential. A loan to the Championship is likely for the 20-year-old.”
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Sending Bindon to the Championship seems a wise move to offer him experience at an even higher level. However, it does bring to question what the club have in store for Zach Abbott, who would be thought to have been in a similar situation to Bindon.
Zach Abbott could benefit from Tyler Bindon decision
After surprisingly starting the FA Cup semi-final against Man City, Espirito Santo praised Abbott’s performance.
Whilst he hasn’t been given any senior minutes since, Forest’s plans for Bindon could well see the 18-year-old be given further opportunities at the City Ground next season. Currently, if Bindon is loaned out, Forest’s centre back options next season look like:
Murillo
Nikola Milenkovic
Morato
Willy Boly (contract expiring)
With Boly’s situation unclear but his lack of minutes suggesting he may not get a new contract, Abbott could well be Espirito Santo’s fourth-choice centre back come the start of next season, surely giving him scope to feature with European qualification secured.