Nottingham Forest already have their own Mateta & he’s “a winger’s dream”

Nottingham Forest are four games unbeaten in the Premier League and stand six points above the relegation fodder, but Sean Dyche‘s side face a fight for survival over the closing months of the campaign.

With the January transfer window now wrapped up, Forest will live or die by their dealings throughout the winter market, having added three first-team players but been left disappointed by a number of failed bids late on.

One which could prove damaging was the failed attempt to sign Crystal Palace striker Jean-Philippe Mateta, who has failed to land himself a mid-season move away from Selhurst Park.

Why Nottingham Forest wanted to sign Mateta

Nottingham Forest were left with a sour taste at the end of the January market, even though they did some good, shrewd business.

Lorenzo Lucca is the highlight, the towering centre-forward joining from Udinese on loan with option to buy for about £35m. Lucca has spent the first half of the season on loan with Napoli, but he only scored once in Serie A.

A package for Mateta, however, carried more sureness. After all, he has scored 38 Premier League goals over the past two-and-a-half seasons, hailed as “one of the best forwards in the league over the past few seasons” by none other than Wayne Rooney.

A somewhat hostile club-to-club relationship may have proved a stumbling block in negotiations, but we do know that the Tricky Trees sent off a £35m cheque for the France international, whose preference was always to move to Italy and sign for AC Milan.

Should Lucca’s months-long trial in the Premier League go according to plan, Marinakis and co will not need to revisit their interest in the 28-year-old.

Especially when you consider that Forest already have their own version of the hulking Eagles star.

Nottingham Forest already have their own version of Mateta

Lucca stands at 6 foot 7 and is obviously a strong aerial presence. But he’s also skilful and progressive. He doesn’t always split defences with carries into the box, but he’s calculated when doing so, completing 67% of his dribbles while on loan with Napoli.

In this, he marks an exciting Mateta alternative, albeit one without experience at the highest level in England.

However, Dyche does already have a Mateta-esque goalscorer in the squad. Though Chris Wood has been sidelined with an injury since the gruff-voiced coach replaced Ange Postecoglou, his return could ease any fears about the absence of a Prem-proven goalscorer up top at the City Ground right now.

Wood is currently sidelined with a knee injury, and though he’s slated to return well before the end of the season, clarity has not been placed on the 34-year-old’s recovery.

Though Wood is getting older, he’s never been a striker who has relied on pace to score goals. A powerful and sharp-witted target man, his positioning and finishing are first-rate.

Let’s not forget that it was only last year that Wood plundered riches in England’s top flight, the talisman of a team who surprised everyone and qualified for Europe. 20 goals he scored, winning duels and expertly holding up play for his teammates.

Would Mateta really offer a stronger presence in the final third? Wood will return to action with the knowledge that he has fresh competition at number nine, though his proven quality will allow him to play the role designated to Mateta.

For Dyche to have taken the wheel at Forest with Wood already in the ranks was a stroke of good fortune, even if he’s yet to return to fitness under his former manager’s wing.

But the Kiwi will return to a more fluid and coherent outfit than at the start of the season, and though age isn’t on his side, a return to scoring form would confirm that Palace did not need to sign a striker in Mateta, who’s no spring chicken himself.

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