Exclusive: Nottingham Forest open formal talks to sign 21-goal Manchester City attacker this summer as Evangelos Marinakis gives greenlight to deal
Nottingham Forest are interested in signing Manchester City winger Carlos Borges, it is claimed.
The 19-year-old is valued at £11m by City, with talks over a potential move said to be at a “preliminary stage”.
According to ESPN, Forest are keen but it is “unclear” if City are willing to sell at this stage, West Ham have also been linked but it is Forest who are reportedly front-runners for his signature with club owner Evangelos Marinakis said to have already given his greenlight to the transfer.
Steve Cooper is looking to add goals to his side as Nottingham Forest prepare for their second season in the top-flight after securing their Premier League status with a win over Arsenal, which coincidentally also guaranteed Manchester City’s latest title.
Forest scored just 38 goals in the Premier League last season, one of the lowest totals in the division, as Chris Wood, who was signed on loan from Newcastle United, suffered a season-ending injury in March.
Borges joined City from Sporting CP in 2015 and has been in fine form, scoring 21 goals in 24 appearances during the 2022-23 season as City under-21s won Premier League 2 for the third year in a row. He also recorded 10 assists as he caused no end of problems for the youngsters’ opponents.
The Portugal under-19 international is yet to make a first team appearance under Pep Guardiola, but is highly rated at the Etihad Stadium, hence the eight-figure asking price for a player with no senior games under his belt. That, in turn, might put off potential suitors like Forest, who would be taking less of a risk if they were to first sign the player on loan.
