Every Nottingham Forest Transfer Since PL Promotion

Since Nottingham Forest’s play-off final victory against Huddersfield Town on 29th May 2022, they haven’t been shy of splashing the cash.

After a 23-year absence from the Premier League, the East Midlanders have displayed their intent to retain their top-flight status by backing manager Steve Cooper in the transfer market.

They’ve spent in excess of £200m across 34 signings and Football FanCast has compiled a list which details all of those additions.

Serge Aurier – Free transfer

Former Tottenham Hotspur right-back Serge Aurier was brought into the City Ground on a free transfer in September 2022.

Considering Forest didn’t have to outlay a single penny to land the 85-cap Ivory Coast international, other than his wages of course, this move was pretty risk-free.

Aurier made 24 Premier League appearances last term, and was a key member of their survival campaign.

A success by all accounts, then.

Loïc Badé – Loan

Quite a bizarre deal, this one.

Loïc Bade, a France Under-21 international, had just come off the back of his first season at Rennes, where he made 21 appearances across all competitions, helping his side achieve a fourth-placed finish.

Newly-promoted Forest signed the young centre-back on a season-long loan deal, with an option to buy, but he failed to make a single appearance at the East Midlands side, before being shunned back to his parent club in the January transfer window.

Now, the 23-year-old is at Sevilla, where he has already won the Europa League with the Spanish outfit, starting and playing all 120 minutes of the final in Budapest against Jose Mourinho’s Roma.

Dean Henderson – Loan

Forest signed Dean Henderson on a season-long loan from Manchester United in the summer of 2022.

He appeared 18 times in the league before having his season cut short due to a thigh injury. Nevertheless, it will certainly go down as a solid signing.

If reports are to be believed, Forest appear eager to resign the United goalkeeper on a loan deal with an obligation to buy, but Crystal Palace are also in the race to land the 26-year-old.

Adnan Kanurić – Free transfer

Bosnian Goalkeeper Adnan Kanurić joined the club from FK Sarajevo last summer.

The young shot-stopper didn’t make a senior appearance for Forest but he did appear twice for the Under-21s.

He was shipped out on loan in February to National League South side Oxford City, where he started 13 games, helping the club gain promotion to the National League.

He was released by Forest in July and is now without a club.

Wayne Hennessey – Free transfer

Veteran keeper Wayne Hennessey was signed, like Kanurić, to facilitate the number one, at the time, Henderson.

He’s an experienced international and a safe pair of hands, a sensible addition to the ranks.

Hennessey still has one year remaining on his contract at the club, and is expected to predominantly feature in the cup competitions, barring any injuries.

Cheikhou Kouyaté – Free transfer

Like many of the transfers so far, they’ve all been pretty risk-free given no fee has been paid and Cheikhou Kouyaté’s transfer is no different.

Kouyaté joined the club upon the expiry of his contract at Crystal Palace last summer and has been a valuable member of Cooper’s side since.

A sensible signing.

Jesse Lingard – Free transfer

Jesse Lingard is in a slightly different boat from a lot of the other free transfers on the list. The former Manchester United forward joined the club on big wages, on a one-year deal.

His short stint in the East Midlands was underwhelming, particularly given the excitement around the deal when he first arrived.

Many fans had high expectations for the 32-cap England international, but he failed to live up to those. The 30-year-old didn’t register a single-goal return in his 17 league outings.

A miss.

Brandon Aguilera – £812k

Forest signed the 2003-born attacking midfielder Brandon Aguilera last summer on a four-year contract from Costa Rican side LD Alajuelense.

He was immediately loaned back to his home nation with AD Guanacasteca, before joining Estoril Praia Under-23s setup in Portugal for the remainder of last season.

The Costa Rica international is now back at the City Ground and has made two appearances in the Premier League 2 (Reserve League), scoring one and providing as many assists in two outings.

Time will tell how successful this signing will be.

Josh Bowler – £2m

Josh Bowler became The Tricky Trees’ 28th signing of the summer last year when he joined from Blackpool for a reported £2m.

Like Aguilera, he was immediately shipped out on loan. Firstly to sister club Olympiacos before rejoining Blackpool in January for the final four months of the campaign.

The winger was again sent out on loan this summer, this time joining Cardiff City.

Bowler doesn’t appear to be in Forest’s plans at all, so this transfer was another strange one.

Maybe they could profit on his sale further down the line should his spell at the Bluebirds be successful.

Harry Toffolo & Lewis O’Brien – £10m

Forest completed the signings of Huddersfield Town duo Harry Toffolo and Lewis O’Brien last summer in a reported £10m deal.

It’s fair to say neither of the pair have really worked out. Toffolo was limited to just nine league starts last term whilst O’Brien made six before being loaned out to D.C. United in March.

They are both yet to feature in any of Forest’s opening two games this season.

Willy Boly – £2.25m

The towering 6 foot 5 defender Willy Boly was brought in from Wolves last September after a five-year stint in the West Midlands.

The 32-year-old made just 11 league appearances in his debut campaign but has started in each of the first two fixtures this term.

£2.25m in today’s market is peanuts, so all things considered, it’s been a decent signing.

Ui-Jo Hwang – £4m

Striker Ui-Jo Hwang was signed from Ligue 1 outfit Bordeaux. He was immediately sent out on loan to sister club Olympiacos before joining K League 1 side FC Seoul for the remainder of the season.

So, he’s not actually made an appearance in a red shirt as of yet, at least competitively. The 30-year-old did score in pre-season during a 1-0 win against Notts County at Meadow Lane, though.

He was named among the substitutes bench in their opening clash against Premier League new boys Sheffield United, but will now be spending the season on loan at Norwich City.

Renan Lodi – £4.7m (loan)

Forest signed Renan Lodi from LaLiga giants Atletico Madrid last summer on a season-long loan.

His short stay in the East Midlands was successful and reports suggested that the club were eager to make the deal a permanent one, but that failed to come to fruition and he is now plying his trade in France with Marseille.

Giulian Biancone – £5m

Giulian Biancone was brought in from Troyes last July for a reported £5m, which was a club-record sale for the French side.

Unfortunately, his debut campaign in England was mostly spent on the sidelines after suffering a serious knee injury.

He appeared in an Under-21s fixture last week so it appears his return to first-team action is imminent.

Remo Freuler – £9m

Signing Remo Freuler, a seasoned Swiss international, from Atalanta for just £9m looked to be a shrewd addition.

But the 31-year-old’s time in England wasn’t particularly inspiring and left the City Ground for good on deadline day, with a swap deal between him and Bologna’s Nicolas Dominguez taking place.

With the amount of signings Forest have made in the last 18 months, there were bound to be some that just didn’t work out – this was definitely one of them.

Omar Richards – £10m

Following Forest’s promotion from the Championship, the Reds outlaid £10m to sign left-back Omar Richards from Bayern Munich.

At the time, it looked like a really exciting addition, but injuries have blighted his career thereafter. He is yet to make an appearance for Forest and is now reportedly edging closer to a loan move to Olympiacos.

Orel Mangala – £12.7m

Orel Mangala has been a dependable player for Cooper since joining from Stuttgart. The 25-year-old is a regular and perhaps doesn’t get the recognition he deserves.

31 appearances in all competitions saw the Belgian become an important member of the squad that secured Premier League survival last season, with the defender a key feature during the run-in.

Good signing.

Moussa Niakhaté – £12.8m

The East Midlanders signed Moussa Niakhaté from Mainz last summer in a deal that could rise to £12.8m.

Since his arrival, the Senegalese centre-back has had pretty mixed fortunes. He was sidelined for over six months of the season after sustaining a hamstring injury but upon his return in March, the 27-year-old played virtually every minute thereafter.

Neco Williams – £16m

After a shaky start to his Forest career, Neco Williams has settled into life at the City Ground really well.

The 22-year-old still has plenty of time to develop and is certainly on track to repay his sizeable transfer fee.

He was in fine form towards the end of last season before injury struck, though a goal on his return to Anfield – albeit in a losing vein – will live long in the memory, at least.

He has plenty of competition to maintain a position within the Forest defence, but remains a fine addition to the squad.

Taiwo Awoniyi – £17.5m

Arguably the best signing of the list. Taiwo Awoniyi, at the time of his arrival, was brought in for a club-record £17.5m.

His 10 Premier League goals last season helped the Reds retain their top-flight status and he is already off the mark this term, scoring in Forest’s opening three matches.

In doing so, he became the first Forest player in nearly 30 years to score in seven consecutive games.

A super signing.