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Transfer regret shows how far Nottingham Forest have come and offers promise of exciting future
Thursday afternoon’s England squad announcement brought with it news of a third senior call-up for Nottingham Forest’s Morgan Gibbs-White.
It was richly deserved for the 24-year-old. An ankle problem had forced him to withdraw from the camp last time around, so he will be desperate to seize the opportunity for a second cap.
It would not have been an injustice if at least one or two other Reds players had joined him in Lee Carsley’s selection for the games against Greece and Republic of Ireland. Ryan Yates was put forward as a Three Lions candidate by head coach Nuno Espirito Santo earlier this season, while Callum Hudson-Odoi must surely have come into the equation.
But Elliot Anderson, in particular, could be forgiven for feeling at least slightly disappointed not to have made the cut. After all, he picked up Gibbs-White’s mantle and ran with it when his teammate was absent for the wins over Crystal Palace and Leicester City.
Nuno arguably faces one of his toughest selection dilemmas of the season so far this weekend. And it comes against Anderson’s former club.
Last weekend, the fact Anderson was struggling with a knock of his own made Nuno’s choice somewhat easier. Gibbs-White was fit enough to start after recovering from his injury but not to last the whole game, so the solution was straightforward enough.
With another week’s recovery behind them both ahead of Sunday’s clash with Newcastle United (2pm kick-off), both Anderson and Gibbs-White will be eager to make the line-up. The former even more so given the opposition.
The recent form of Yates and Nicolas Dominguez means Anderson also has some stiff competition for a midfield role. With the way Forest are going, every place in the XI has to be earned - any drop-off in performance and there is a replacement ready to slot straight in.
Whether he starts or not, though, Anderson is capable of having a big impact against his old club. And watching him do so well will only increase the sense of transfer regret in the north east.
Given the red-hot form of Chris Wood - another ex-Magpie, of course - there might be double the regret for the visitors. Wood did not get on the pitch when the teams faced each other in the Carabao Cup in August and was absent when Eddie Howe’s side visited the City Ground in the league in February, so the last time he came up against Newcastle was when he scored a hat-trick against them.
The memory of that 3-1 victory for Forest on Boxing Day last year will send shivers down the spine of all Magpies. The Reds have made great strides since then, too. Nuno’s men are eight places above their next opponents and four points better off.
Even more exciting for supporters, they are capable of improving further - with Anderson a case in point. He already looks so assured and plays beyond his years, but he is only 22. He has bags of room for growth and development.
There can be several contenders for Forest’s signing of the summer from the 2024 crop. Nikola Milenkovic probably takes that crown just now, but Anderson has the talent to run him close further down the line.
