Nottingham Forest are close to completing a deal to sign Michy Batshuayi from Chelsea, reports Fabrizio Romano.
Incredibly, this would make him Forest’s 20th signing of the transfer window following their promotion to the Premier League.
Michy Batshuayi to Sign for Nottingham Forest on Deadline Day
Exclusive: Nottingham Forest are set to sign Michy Batshuayi! Deal almost done with Chelsea. 🚨🚨🌳 #NFFC #CFC #DeadlineDay pic.twitter.com/6kqxAUjfKR
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) September 1, 2022
‘The Bat-Man’ to Move to the East Midlands
Batshuayi has had a career full of promise. As a youngster making his way in the game, he boasted a very impressive goal record for Standard Liege and Marseille. Across five seasons he netted 65 goals in 157 games.
This earned him a move to Chelsea, where he has had a mixed time. In his first season, he made 28 Premier League appearances, but never fully lived up to expectations.
The following season he had an impressive spell on loan at Borussia Dortmund, followed by a stint with Valencia. This loan was cut short by torn ankle ligaments.
A season and a half at Crystal Palace followed, where he was never able to hold down a starting place.
Career Revival
Last season, he went out on loan again, this time to Besiktas. Away from the media attention of the Premier League, he was aiming to demonstrate his ability once more. He scored 14 league goals, proving that he does still possess some of the quality that he promised early in his career.
Forest fans will be hoping that he can carry that form to his new club, should the deal be completed.
Big Spending Reds
Following promotion, Nottingham Forest have not held back in the transfer market in an attempt to compete in the top flight. The squad that won the Championship play-offs relied heavily on players on loan from other clubs.
As a result, they already had a depleted squad at the beginning of the transfer window. Their summer spending already tops £140 million and they are showing no sign of slowing down even this late into the window.
Their current main striker is Taiwo Awoniyi, signed from Union Berlin for a reported £17.5 million. Batshuayi is being brought in to provide competition for this striker position.
This is necessary as although Forest has suffered a mixed start to the season, they have only scored two goals in five league matches so far. If they are to have a chance of avoiding relegation, they will need to find goals from somewhere.
