Nottingham Forest remain interested in Yoane Wissa, but their attempts to sign the Brentford striker won’t be easy given how the Bees are negotiating other deals.
Forest targeted Brentford in January as Nuno Espírito Santo sought stronger competition for Chris Wood up front, but a deal was never going to be easy given his importance to The Bees.
Evangelos Marinakis put his best efforts into the deal, with Forest having a £22m bid rejected for Wissa as Brentford looked for closer to £40m for the Congolese forward.
Wissa remains of interest to Forest as the summer transfer window kicks off, but Marinakis won’t have an easy ride at the negotiating table.
Photo by Vince Mignott/MB Media/Getty Images
Photo by Vince Mignott/MB Media/Getty Images
Brentford’s Bryan Mbeumo stance gives Nottingham Forest a Yoane Wissa hint
Alongside Wissa, Forest showed interest in Bryan Mbeumo, with the Brentford strike duo scoring 39 Premier League goals between them last season.
The Mbeumo deal isn’t looking likely given Manchester United’s push to sign the 25-year-old, but Forest can still gain an advantage in the Wissa pursuit by closely analysing how Brentford act in negotiations with United.
"I heard that we are the best duo in mid-table!" 😅
Yoane Wissa speaks about his partnership with Bryan Mbeumo 🤝 pic.twitter.com/e0mp7aXBES
— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) May 23, 2025
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According to The Mirror: “Manchester United have been told to forget trying to sign Bryan Mbeumo on the cheap, with Brentford wanting upwards of £60 million for the forward.
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“[…] Brentford are also said to be willing to hold out until deadline day on September 1 if that is what it takes for United to meet their asking price for 25-year-old Mbeumo.”
Clearly, Brentford won’t be messed around when it comes to the fee for their star players, despite being open to a deal. Therefore, Marinakis has a clear path if he wants to secure Wissa’s services.
Evangelos Marinakis will have to pay up to secure Yoane Wissa
Before a move for Wissa, the Reds are about to complete a triple signing of Botafogo stars Igor Jesus, Cuiabano and Jair Cunha.
Forest will pay £33.6m for the Botafogo trio in what looks like a bargain deal, but the same is unlikely to be said about any deal involving Wissa.
In January, Brentford demanded £40m for Wissa and that fee is unlikely to have altered, with the crucial aspect that could cost Forest the deal found in how that fee is structured.
Brentford will be looking for as much of the total fee as possible up front to finance a replacement for Wissa, so Marinakis will have to do significantly better than the £22m he offered up in January.