Eddie Nketiah is said to be on the verge of joining Crystal Palace following the collapse of a transfer to Nottingham Forest, who have been dealt a blow in the search for a striker – this time by Santiago Gimenez.
Hoping to recruit a centre forward before the summer window shuts, Forest made efforts on dual fronts. Unfortunately the first of those failed to pay off as negotiations fell through for top target Nketiah by the weekend’s end.
At the same time the club had been failing to strike an agreement with Dutch side Feyenoord for Santiago Gimenez. As talks with Arsenal were ending, one final push was made for the Mexican with a £29m offer submitted. It was said the player was open to the move, putting the onus on Forest to arrange personal terms.
However, that final detail appears not to have been the case as the club experience the fierce nature of the transfer market. According to The Telegraph, the move for Gimenez is now off as he has unexpectedly rejected advances for his signature. There is no suggestion of this being in favour of another club – instead he seemingly wishes to stay put at Feyenoord.
The 23-year-old’s decision leaves Forest with Chris Wood and Taiwo Awoniyi as their central attacking options heading into the 2024/25 season, facing a mad dash to find an alternative in the few days that remain before Friday’s transfer deadline.
Too add to the misery, they could be made to watch on as a Premier League rivals Crystal Palace secures the services of Nketiah. Yesterday they were said to have followed up early-summer discussions and Forest’s shortcomings with an offer of their own.
The Athletic claim their bid to be worth £25m plus £5m in add-ons – likely similar to the ‘framework’ of the £30m package Forest had agreed – and say an agreement for the switch to South London is near. Remaining in capital was always high on the player’s agenda if he is to leave Arsenal.
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