Nottingham Forest ace in 'mortgage on it' transfer claim ahead of summer window
Nottingham Forest winger Anthony Elanga reportedly remains on the radar of Newcastle United as clubs have one eye on their end-of-season plans.
The Magpies tested the waters for the 22-year-old last summer after he had put in a string of impressive performances during his first year at the City Ground. However, even a reported £50 million deadline day offer for Elanga from their Premier League rivals was not enough to tempt the Reds to sell.
Forest might find their resolve to hang on to the Sweden international is put to the test again in the coming months. It seems Newcastle’s interest has not gone away.
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According to GIVEMESPORT, Elanga continues to have admirers at St James Park’. Eddie Howe’s team are said to be a safe bet to sign a right winger in the summer, with the Reds ace a potential target.
The report quotes reporter Ben Jacobs as saying: “Absolutely (Newcastle will sign a right winger). Put your mortgage on it. They've got to replace Miguel Almiron. Amongst others, they still like Nottingham Forest's Anthony Elanga.”
After being in mixed form earlier on in the campaign, Elanga has been back to his best in the Garibaldi of late. He has eight assists and three goals to his name in the league and will be a key figure in the club’s push for European football.
Prior to the January transfer window opening, head coach Nuno Espirito Santo stressed the priority for Forest was to hang on to their prized assets. It was a repeat of the strategy the Reds took last summer, and they came through the month with the squad still intact.
Forest did want to add a striker to the ranks and tried their luck with Brentford’s Yoane Wissa but with no success. It leaves Chris Wood and Taiwo Awoniyi as the two forwards in the dressing room, although both Elanga and Jota Silva could fill in if required.
“I think we are in a good place as a squad,” Nuno has said of the club’s winter window. “As long as we keep ourselves healthy and work as good as we are working, I think we can compete until the end of the season.
“It was a quiet window for all the clubs. It is always very difficult to operate and we were aware of that.
“We had a clear intention to retain the core of the squad. All the players are here and are available.
“We didn’t achieve what we wanted because it is very hard. We keep going.”
