Igor Jesus and Jair Cunha can be considered new Nottingham Forest players from Botafogo, deal sealed.
There are still details pending for Cuiabano deal.
I do find it interesting that it looks like next season we'll have Wood, off a 20 goal premier league season, Jesus, who's scored two in two in the world club championship, and Taiwo, who's erratic but still a threat at his best and would clearly be a viable starter in the conference league (if fit), and lots of people's reaction is "we need a striker with premier league experience". Like adding Calvert-Lewin on 100k a week to be fit for half the season is a sensible way for the club to operate.
You reckon we’ll see a fit Taiwo before Christmas? If ever? The club will have some idea, I guess, but even so.
Assuming Jesus (not the Messiah; a very naughty boy) is as done a deal as Romano says, he’s exactly the sort of forward we want - not an Wood clone but someone who can play across the line (by all accounts) & regularly gets outside the box to play in others.
I wouldn’t object to another No.9 as well - but it certainly wouldn’t be Calvert-Lewin. And I’m not sure about this obsession that new players must have PL experience. PL experience adds a lot to the price - especially for forwards. So we’re not going to be able to afford most
I've no idea if Jesus will be able to adapt to premier league football either but the club must or they wouldn't be signing him and his profile means the intention is unlikely to be to give him a year to develop.
If we reached a point where none of Wood, Jesus or Taiwo were available, I think they'd look to Elanga/Silva/Gibbs-White or another, new, wide player who can do a job there.
Timothy Weah and Samuel Mbangula from Juve, apparently. Both wingers by the sound of it, which presumably means that we'll likely cash in on Elanga to Newcastle.
Jesus looks promising. Not the biggest but quick, strong, runs the channels, harasses defenders, holds it up, links the play. Seems to have all the tools to be successful in the Premier League if Forest can get a deal over the line.
While I would prefer all 3, getting the highest priority* one of the Botafogans is still good business. And competing with Madrid and Brighton suggestss we're digging in the right place.
Might turn out to be getting medium T to eat as much food and Guinness as he can, while running up and down sand dunes, and bench pressing full beer kegs....
Looking at FBRef, Weah seems like a wingback (i.e. great attacking numbers, mediocre defending numbers for a fullback; great defending numbers, shite attacking numbers for a winger). Combined with our huge number of defenders, wonder whether we're looking to play more with a back three next season.