Nottingham Forest are simply blessed with attacking talent in their current crop of forwards. The men in Garibaldi Red have been on fire this season, and find themselves flying high in the Premier League in third.
Chris Wood has certainly remembered his shooting boots this term. The New Zealand striker is the in-form player in the Forest side, with 13 goals in all competitions this term, more than any of his teammates.
The midfield trio behind him are equally as productive. Callum Hudson-Odoi has four goal involvements this term, Morgan Gibbs-White has seven to his name and Anthony Elanga is flying with eight goals and assists.
Incredibly, it seems like Forest could be looking to add more firepower to their already deadly attack with one Premier League star.
Nottingham Forest's search for a striker
The player in question here is Bretford forward Yoane Wissa. The DR Congo attacker has been on fire this term for the Bees, but could well depart the club before the transfer window slams shut in February.
At least, that is according to a report from John Percy of The Telegraph. Forest are expected to ‘explore a move’ for the 28-year-old in the coming days, as they look to add to the depth in attacking areas, should Taiwo Awoniyi depart.
However, they will not be alone in the chase for the Brentford star. North London giants Arsenal, who are one of only two teams above Forest in the Premier League table, also have the forward on a list of new recruits for attack. At this stage, a price for the attacker remains to be seen.
Why Wissa would be a good signing
It has been an exceptional season for Wissa so far in 2024/25, starring up front for the Bees alongside Bryan Mbuemo. The pair have really stepped up since Ivan Toney left the club in the summer for Suadi Arabian side Al-Ahli.
This term, Wissa has scored 11 times in the Premier League, grabbing two assists along the way, in 18 appearances in the top flight.
He has scored and assisted multiple goals in a game four times, which included two crucial strikes against Bournemouth to give his side a 3-2 win. He has certainly been “massively underrated”, as football analyst Ben Mattinson explained.
The DR Congo star could be a fantastic long-term upgrade on Awoniyi. The Nigerian striker seems like he could be on the way to Forest, with Percy explaining he is a ‘target’ for West Ham but they are yet to make a bid.
Although the former Union Berlin striker has shown some promise in that Garibaldi Red shirt, with 18 goals in 71 games for the club, he has not performed well this term.
He has just one goal in 16 Premier League appearances all season, with that strike coming in the recent 3-0 win away to Wolverhampton Wanderers.
In fact, when looking at the statistics of the pair over the past two and a half seasons, since Awoniyi first moved to the Premier League, you can see the quality Wissa possesses compared to the Forest number nine.
For example, according to FBref, the Brentford attacker takes an average of 2.31 shots and averages 0.36 goal-creating actions per game. In comparison, Awoniyi averages 2.19 shots and 0.34 goal-creating actions.
Although those numbers are fairly close, Wissa is a superior player when it comes to his dribbling ability. The Bees’ number 11 averages 1.66 progressive carries each game, compared to 1.01 progressive carries per 90 minutes from the Nigerian striker.
Stat (per 90)
Wissa
Awoniyi
Shots
2.31
2.19
Goal-creating actions
0.36
0.34
Assists
0.13
0.13
Key passes
0.9
0.71
Progressive carries
0.66
1.01
Given his hot form this term, Wissa seems like he would be a big upgrade on Awoniyi, who seems destined to leave the club. He would certainly add to the attacking firepower at the City Ground this term.
The former Lorient star could be exactly the player Forest are looking for to help spur them on to Champions League qualification.
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