Nottingham Forest head coach Sean Dyche faces a selection dilemma for the clash with Leeds United at Elland Road
07:00, 06 Feb 2026
Nottingham Forest striker Lorenzo Lucca
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Nottingham Forest striker Lorenzo Lucca(Image: Getty)
Head coach Sean Dyche feels Nottingham Forest will benefit from having strikers with different skill-sets to choose from in the remainder of the season.
Summer signing Igor Jesus had been carrying the load for the Reds in the injury absence of last season’s top scorer Chris Wood. But the Brazilian should now be able to get a bit of respite, following the arrival of Lorenzo Lucca on loan from Napoli.
The two forwards have different characteristics, while Taiwo Awoniyi will also feel he can still have a part to play after scoring against Brentford last month. Lucca’s 6ft 7in height should tally well with Forest’s tactic of putting crosses into the box, but Dyche is delighted to have options.
“That was a big part of bringing him in, because he has a different profile and might be able to change the way we operate,” Dyche said of Lucca. “You want players who can operate in different ways, hopefully.
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“Some days it’s good to have like for like. Central defenders are a good example. The basics have to be done - you have to be able to head it and kick it, you have got to be able to defend - and it is nice to have those similarities.
“But with centre forwards, you want different ways of working. During a game, if you want to affect it, it’s helpful if you’ve got different styles - particularly with centre forwards.
“The club have spent a lot of money on wide players. We’ve got good players who we’ve spent fortunes on, so it’s nice to have someone big who they can target in the box - that’s common sense.”
Lucca was an unused substitute in last weekend’s 1-1 draw with Crystal Palace. Dyche opted to replace Jesus with winger Dan Ndoye in the second half, rather than bring on the Italian for his debut. The new man could make his first appearance against Leeds United at Elland Road this evening (8pm kick-off), however.
“We’ve all been pleased with how Igor’s done and he has added goals recently,” Dyche said. “Against Palace, it was just a tactical thing to release Dan Ndoye with his pace.
“But he (Lucca) has fitted in really well. He wants to play and we want him to get some minutes, to show us what he can do.”
In addition to Lucca, Forest signed goalkeeper Stefan Ortega and left-back Luca Netz during the winter window. They had wanted to also bring in a midfielder and another forward but were not able to get deals over the line.
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Whether they have adequate strength in depth to secure Premier League survival and mount a Europa League challenge remains to be seen. Dyche admits it can be difficult to strike a balance between recruiting players with sufficient experience to hit the ground running and those with the potential to grow.
“These are the challenges,” he said when quizzed on his resources. “When you are signing players who are up and coming; who are learning and developing - who you are trying to fast-track into Premier League life.
“It is the kind of thing that football is going towards, including this club. And I can see why, because we all know the numbers now. The numbers (in fees) for the ‘they are ready, they know what they are doing straight away’ kind of players are enormous.
“This club is not shy about putting a few quid in, we all know that - this owner (Evangelos Marinakis) has made that clear. But the idea is that you try to buy players who are not quite ready, but then develop them so that they are game-ready, they are young, they can do the job and of course, they are saleable.
“It is just not an easy process. I have been doing this job for a long time in the Premier League. It is not an easy process to progress these players, to make them Premier League-ready players all at once, to win, give the crowd what they want, get the points on the board and then sell them for fortunes.
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“The club know that. We have spoken about that. They have said that they agree. Now and then one or two players just pop in and, as if by magic, they look like Premier League players. But it is quite rare unless you spend a ludicrous amount of money on some individuals.”
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