Nottingham Forest are going to be rather busy during the final two weeks of the transfer window, it would seem.
The Reds have signed Igor Jesus, Jair Cunha, Angus Gunn, Dan Ndoye, Omari Hutchinson and James McAtee this summer.
McAtee was hailed by Rico Lewis after signing for Forest on Saturday and for a while, it’s looked as though the City player might join him on Trentside.
Evangelos Marinakis is a big fan of Lewis and with Forest in need of full-backs, it was anticipated that the Reds would be moving for the versatile player.
However, Pep Guardiola has now made some claims that might prevent the Reds from pairing Lewis with McAtee in the Forest team any time soon.
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Pep Guardiola makes claim on future of Rico Lewis
Lewis couldn’t have timed his best City performance for months any worse from a Forest point of view, as he claimed an assist during a 4-0 win over Wolves on Saturday.
The player has been the subject of interest from Forest, with Espirito Santo very keen to get sorted with some depth in the full-back areas.
When quizzed on the future of Lewis this summer, Guardiola shared what the defender has told him about his future at the Etihad Stadium.
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He said: “I think he’s going to stay, I think. He told me that! Today, I think he’s going to stay, but I don’t actually know what’s going to happen.”
🚨💙 Pep Guardiola on Nottingham Forest bid for Rico Lewis: “I think he's going to stay, I think. He told me that!”.
“Today, I think he's going to stay, but I don't know what's going to happen…”. pic.twitter.com/XehkZxWfUn
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) August 17, 2025
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Forest need alternative options to Lewis
If the young City player is going to be guaranteed a starting spot this season, then it might be a hard sell to get him to the City Ground.
With that in mind, it’s going to be very important that the Reds move away from Lewis pretty quickly and bring other full-backs to the club.
Yesterday’s squad didn’t feature a full-back in reserve, with Cunha and Zach Abbott considered deputy options if absolutely necessary.
Lewis would be a very good signing for Forest and it’s now important that some clarity is sorted when it comes to landing more full-backs.