Nottingham Forest

Pat Riddell
Fan writer

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The selfish decision would have been to hope Manchester City won the FA Cup.

But who could deny the football romantic's dream of Crystal Palace finally winning a major trophy? If Pep Guardiola's side had lifted the cup on 17 May then Nottingham Forest, already guaranteed European football, would have gained a place in the Europa League without all the furore that has followed.

I, for one, was happy that the Eagles had some silverware in their cabinet - and hoped Forest would see their own way into the Europa League, or even the Champions League.

But at the end of the day - to use a football cliche - it all comes down to merit; you get what you deserve.

Of course, if you have broken the rules - inadvertently or not - then you get what you deserve. While it feels cruel to deny Palace what they have achieved, there is a reason Evangelos Marinakis put his shares into a blind trust.

The south London club will feel unfairly treated - but only in the same way that it felt when the Reds were docked points last year for falling foul of the PSR rules.

It is a messy affair and football authorities on both sides of the Channel are not making a lot of friends beyond the top clubs, who are rarely punished in this fashion. But who are we to look a gift horse in the mouth? If Forest are to take Palace's place, then there will no play-offs to navigate next month, with a bigger prize to boot.

Last season, winning the Europa League last season was worth about £26.5m while, in contrast, the Conference League was only just over half at £15m. But beyond revenues, the winner takes a place in the Champions League.

As the current Europa League holders, Tottenham Hotspur's new-found wealth has been the cause of anguish at the City Ground this week with a £60m move for Morgan Gibbs-White, following fellow Champions League qualifiers Newcastle United's £55m bid for Anthony Elanga.

A place in the Europa League would be a welcome distraction from transfer woes, and something to seriously look forward to.

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Katie Stafford
BBC Sport journalist

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Crystal Palace have been expelled from the Europa League and will play in the Conference League next season.

Uefa have ruled that John Textor - Palace's co-owner - breaches their multi-club ownership rules with his other stake in Ligue 1 outfit Lyon.

Palace earned their place by winning the FA Cup, but their admission was rejected on Friday and Lyon's was accepted, meaning the French club remain in the Europa League.

Premier League rivals Nottingham Forest are set to replace them in Uefa's second continental competition.

The decision can be appealed before the Court of Arbitration for Sport, in accordance with Uefa statutes.

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Nottingham Forest have confirmed their latest summer signing to be defender Jair Cunha from Botafogo in Brazil's Serie A league.

The 20-year-old has just returned from the Club World Cup where Botafogo went out in the Round of 16 against fellow Brazilian side Palmeiras.

Forest's chief football officer, Ross Wilson said: "Jair is a young talent who has shown quality during his time in Brazil, and we are happy to have secured his signature.

"Jair has flourished in Brazil and now has new ambitions as he moves to the Premier League. We know he will be warmly welcomed into the group here in Nottingham."

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BBC Radio Nottingham are reporting that Forest are considering legal action over a potential illegal approach and breach of confidentiality, relating to Morgan Gibbs-White's proposed move to Tottenham.

The deal is off for now.

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We asked for your views on Morgan Gibbs-White being set to leave Nottingham Forest for Tottenham, who are triggering a £60m release clause.

Here are some of your comments:

Steven: What on earth are Forest thinking? First Anthony Elanga [close to £55m move to Newcastle], now Gibbs-White. Who in their right mind thinks selling these players makes Forest better? If this is confirmed, I'm done with Forest.

Max: It feels like this is the beginning of the end. Losing Elanga, and now losing Gibbs-White. I hope I am wrong, but I think we could be back in the Championship in a few years. We can't sell our biggest stars and expect to continue on an upward trajectory.

Grahame: We will be fighting relegation again if we sell any more players. This all comes out of missing out on the Champions League. Anyway, I would not be selling Gibbs-White for anything less than 100m! Newcastle got Elanga cheap when we should have held out for at least £60m or £70m. Typical of the top clubs thinking they can run all over the so-called little clubs.

Jonathan: My player of the season is off to Newcastle and now the club's other match-winning talent is about to depart, leaving Callum Hudson-Odoi as the sole creator and finisher. Unless there is a player of similar quality about to join the squad, it is likely to be a low-scoring and challenging season.

Simon: If they sell Gibbs-White, having just sold Elanga, you might as well just drop out of Europe and relegate us now.

Max T: A completely disastrous double blow. Gibbs-White leaving rips the heart out of our team. He brings captain energy and drive. The reveal of a £60m release clause no fan was aware of has been tough to stomach and shines more light on the promotion deal we struck. It is almost impossible to replace two players like this in two windows. Not the European dawn I imagined.

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Noel Sliney
BBC Sport

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The expected departure of Morgan Gibbs-White will leave a cavernous creative void at Nottingham Forest. While Chris Wood provided the goals last season and Newcastle-bound Anthony Elanga enhanced Forest's forward line with his pace and assists, Gibbs-White was the team's fulcrum.

Thriving in the No.10 role for his club under Nuno Espirito Santo, Gibbs-White made his England debut last September and contributed seven top-flight goals and eight assists as Forest improved by 10 places on their finishing position in 2024. He is the only player to reach double figures for combined goals and assists in three consecutive Premier League seasons with Forest.

Last season, the 25-year-old was involved in 148 attacks that led to an attempt on goal in the Premier League, either through him taking the shot, creating the chance or being involved in the build-up. None of his team-mates came close to matching that tally.

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The possible £60m acquisition of Gibbs-White means new Spurs head coach Thomas Frank could have an abundance of options to play as the central attacking midfielder. It follows swiftly on from a £55m deal for Mohammed Kudus, who typically played out wide for West Ham but has said his preferred position is as a No.10.

Tottenham, of course, already had James Maddison and Dejan Kulusevski for that role. Those four players are versatile but the question is whether they can all contribute and be content?

Nottingham Forest have had another bid rejected for Brentford striker Yoane Wissa, 28. The bid is believed to be even lower than the £25m they previously offered for the Congolese international in January despite the Bees' valuation of £50m. (The Athletic - subscription required), external

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Image source, Nottingham Forest FC

Nottingham Forest have revealed their new home kit for the 2025-26 season.

The launch on social media and the club's official website comes against a background of fan frustration at the imminent sales of midfielder Morgan Gibbs-White and winger Anthony Elanga to Tottenham and Newcastle respectively.

The club said the strip is "inspired by kits of the past" and features "the return of white pinstripes first seen in the 1981-82 season and now paired with a modern, darker stripe".

Forest added: "As we prepare to take the stars back to the European footballing stage for the first time since 1995-96, a piece of our illustrious history is coming with us as the club celebrates its 160th anniversary this season."

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With Nottingham Forest in talks with Tottenham over the £60m sale of Morgan Gibbs-White, we want your views.

The England international is set to have a medical with the north London side. Well-placed sources have told BBC Sport the 25-year-old has a £60m release clause, which Spurs are set to trigger with the formalities of his switch to accelrrate in the next 24 hours.

An exit would leave Forest without Gibbs-White when they are already set to lose Anthony Elanga to Newcastle for £55m.

So, what do you make of the news, especially the release clause that is understood to be in place? And if both Gibbs-White and Elanga are sold, who do Forest replace the duo with this summer?

Get in touch with your thoughts here

Nottingham Forest and Crystal Palace are among the Premier League clubs considering Manchester City and England Under-21s midfielder James McAtee, 22, this summer. (Sky Sports, external)

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Colin Fray
BBC Radio Nottingham reporter

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Watching Anthony Elanga play is a lot of fun!

As they always, and quite rightly say "there's no substitute for pace", and if you have end product after the run, it is a dangerous combination.

That is why Newcastle want Elanga, and that is why Forest have been reluctant to part with him.

Ultimately, though, Forest will feel that they have a good deal financially, and for them it is about how they spend to replace the Sweden international. That is going to be crucial going forward for Nuno Espirito Santo's side, because Elanga was excellent for the Forest head coach.

When he was going through a lean spell, Nuno publicly backed him, and was proved right as Elanga bagged six goals and 11 assists last season – improving both from the previous campaign.

With Newcastle, he will have a Champions League campaign to look forward to, and Eddie Howe will be hoping he can provide the assists for compatriot Alexander Isak in the Magpies' forward line.

Always smiling, his bubbly enthusiasm is infectious, and he fitted perfectly into the Forest dressing-room spirit that took them so far last season.

It was fun talking to him, and it was fun watching him... and if you want to know how much fun, just have a look at his winning goal against Manchester United last season – a solo run from his own half, holding defenders off and then finding a finish.

Classic Anthony Elanga.

Nick Mashiter
BBC Sport football news reporter

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Nottingham Forest winger Ramon Sosa has joined Palmeiras for about £10m.

The 25-year-old only moved to the City Ground from Argentine side CA Talleres last summer.

Brazilian side Palmeiras were knocked out of the Club World Cup by Chelsea in the quarter finals at the weekend.

Sosa made 23 appearances for Nuno Espirito Santo's side, scoring three times, but started just once in the Premier League.

He leaves before fellow winger Anthony Elanga's expected £55m move to Newcastle, which could be completed this week.

Manchester United hold a 15% sell-on, although it is unclear if that is on the profit following Elanga's £13.5m move from Old Trafford two years ago or on the overall deal.

The 23-year-old appeared in all of Forest's Premier League games last season, scoring six goals, as they finished seventh.

Forest hold a long-term interest in PSV Eindhoven winger Johan Bakayoko as they look for replacements.

Karan Vinod
BBC Sport Journalist

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Securing Ola Aina for another three years is more than just a routine piece of business. Since arriving at Forest, the former Chelsea academy graduate has quietly become a central figure in Nuno Espirito Santo's side, balancing defensive solidity with forward intent.

To understand how good he is, we delved into his numbers, using percentile rankings, which compare players across the Premier League within their positional group.

They essentially reveal how a player performs in a specific statistical category relative to their peers: the higher the percentile, the better the player ranks.

His aerials figure stands out immediately, hovering over the 90th percentile. What this metric means is that Aina is among the best in the Premier League when it comes to winning aerial duels, with very few full-backs outperforming him in this regard. This ability to dominate in the air adds an important dimension to Forest's defence.

He is excellent on the ground too, shown by his exceptional ball recovery, where he again ranks in one of the highest percentiles for Premier League full-backs. His ability to regain possession has greatly helped Forest's threat on the counter.

Aina also ranks well for clearances, featuring in the 75th percentile. This suggests he is adept at removing danger as well as making timely interventions. While shots blocked is not particularly high, it still represents his commitment to defending, a necessity for a team that, even while towards the top of the table, spends a lot of time without the ball.

Finally, Aina's athleticism in driving forward helps relieve pressure and build attacks with greater width, something that will be valuable against more tactically varied European opponents next season.

With continental competition returning to the City Ground for the first time in decades, locking down Aina helps Forest have continuity alongside their ambition. The numbers above suggest he is the kind of full-back essential to success in modern football.

Nottingham Forest are looking at Lyon winger Malick Fofana - as well as PSV Eindhoven's 22-year-old fellow Belgian Johan Bakayoko - as a potential replacement for Anthony Elanga. The 20-year-old is also linked with Chelsea and Bayern Munich. (Sky Sports), external

Manchester United are set to get £8m from the sell-on clause they negotiated when they sold Elanga to Forest in 2023. (Talksport, external)

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Nick Mashiter
BBC Sport football news reporter

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Nottingham Forest did not want to sell Anthony Elanga, but every player has his price.

There was a desire to keep the winger at the City Ground this summer but with Newcastle prepared to pay £55m and meet Forest's asking price, the situation naturally changes.

Elanga did not push for a move, but a club record sale is ultimately too good to refuse.

They kept him from the Magpies last season, but this will be a £40m return after signing the Sweden international from Manchester United for about £15m just two years ago.

Former boss Steve Cooper was crucial to Elanga joining. He was poised to go to Everton, but Cooper convinced the youngster that the City Ground was the best option and that he would play and develop.

Boss Nuno Espirito Santo has previously spoken about the importance of keeping his squad together, one which eventually finished seventh in the Premier League to return the club to Europe for the first time since 1995-96.

Murillo, Chris Wood, Neco Williams and Ola Aina have signed new deals this year, along with Nuno himself, as Forest focused on building from a position of strength.

Yet winger Elanga is being allowed to leave despite being a crucial part of Forest's season and the way they play.

With Callum Hudson-Odoi, they carried a threat from the flanks and helped Wood score 20 goals last term, Elanga scoring six goals and making 11 assists.

Those were the third most assists in the Premier League last season, behind Mohamed Salah [18] and Newcastle's Jacob Murphy [12] - someone he could potentially be replacing at St James' Park.

Fellow winger Ramon Sosa is also being allowed to leave the City Ground. He is expected to join Palmeiras in Brazil, so Forest will be a little short in wide areas.

Johan Bakayoko is of long-term interest and scored 11 goals as PSV beat Ajax to the Eredivisie title on the final day, but expect Forest to be surgical with their signings as they look to bulk up to prepare for Europe.

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