Since promotion back to the Premier League in 2021/22, Nottingham Forest have been one of the more active clubs in the transfer market.
The Midlands side have splashed the cash since returning to the top flight. In their first transfer window following promotion, Forest spent a reported £150m according to The Guardian, meaning they have a net spend of £-223.66m over the past five years.
2020/21
Championship/17th
£-521k
2021/22
Championship/4th
£-5.23m
2022/23
Premier League/16th
£-159.62m
2023/24
Premier League/17th
£-40.61m
2024/25
Premier League/N/A
£-18.7m
Some of their signings include the likes of Chris Wood who signed from Newcastle, and Callum Hudson-Odoi on a permanent deal from Chelsea. Few players now remain from the promotion squad, but it is a group of players who would no doubt be looked upon fondly by Forest fans.
Nottingham Forest’s promotion heroes
It was certainly a superb season for the former European Cup winners, as they won the play-off final against Huddersfield.
The Midlands club finished fourth that season on 80 points with the Terriers coming two points ahead of them in third. However, they had the last laugh thanks to a Levi Colwill own-goal at Wembley to send them to the Premier League after 23 years away.
It was certainly an impressive season for the men in Garibaldi Red, with some standout performers along the way. Arguably their player of the season was Wales winger Brennan Johnson. The attacker, who now plays for Tottenham Hotspur, was Forest’s top scorer from their promotion campaign. He got himself on the scoresheet 19 times and registered 15 assists in 53 games.
Lewis Grabban was the other player to hit double figures for the Midlands outfit, scoring 13 times in just 34 fixtures. It was also an impressive season for Djed Spence, who earned himself a move to Spurs off the back of that campaign, although it has not really worked out for the right-back in North London.
There were two players who registered ten assists for Forest. One of those was Philip Zinckernagel, who also scored seven goals in 50 appearances. The other was someone who Forest came close to signing permanently after a memorable loan spell at the club.
James Garner’s Forest record
The player in question here is Everton midfielder James Garner. The midfielder enjoyed two successful loan spells at the City Ground, but particularly thrived in 2021/22, as Forest won their promotion.
During that memorable campaign, Garner was sublime, playing 49 games, scoring four times and grabbing ten assists. Those numbers are especially impressive considering he was just 20 years old at the time.
The skill that stood out most from the Manchester United academy graduate in that second season in Nottingham was the quality of his set-piece delivery. He is a master from dead ball situations, able to get superb whip and power on freekicks and corners which had success in creating a goal for the Midlands outfit.
That summer, he came close to a return to the club, according to a report from Sky Sports, but he instead made the move from Old Trafford to Goodison Park. He cost the Toffees £15m but has since risen in value.
Nowadays, the 23-year-old midfielder is valued at £18.5m according to Transfermarkt, a small rise on the amount Everton spent on him two summers ago.
Indeed, that is more expensive than some of Forest’s biggest stars today. Hudson-Odoi who scored a winning goal at Anfield last Saturday, is worth slightly less, at £15.m. Surprisingly, Wood is worth even less, just £5.8m, over £10m dearer than Garner.
Forest fans may well wish they had signed Garner permanently. The 23-year-old is not only worth more than what they would have needed to pay, but his quality on the ball, particularly from set-pieces, could have been a great asset for Nuno Espirito Santo. Not only that, he is loved by the fans, after playing such a pivotal role in their 2021/22 promotion.
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