Nottingham Forest announce bargain Man City signing as next two targets revealed | OneFootball

Nottingham Forest have completed the impressive signing of Stefan Ortega from Manchester City, while they are also targeting Inter Milan and Everton stars before the transfer deadline.

Nottingham Forest announced the arrival of giant Italian striker Lorenzo Lucca on January 23, and now Ortega has followed him to the City Ground. In a club statement, Forest confirmed they have signed the goalkeeper on a six-month contract after Man City sanctioned his departure.

Edu Gaspar, who works as global head of football for Evangelos Marinakis’ group of clubs, reacted to the transfer by telling club media: “Stefan arrives here with fantastic experience and a winning mentality, having been part of such a successful team for the past few seasons.

“When it became clear the goalkeeper position was somewhere we needed to address, Stefan stood out straight away. He will provide great competition for our group of goalkeepers, and will help the team on and off the pitch.”

The announcement comes after the German press revealed on Saturday that Forest had reached a ‘full agreement’ with City for Ortega.

Forest have paid City just £500,000 for the German, who is widely regarded as one of the best backup keepers in the Premier League. Ortega will wear the No 27 shirt at the City Ground.

Sean Dyche’s side needed a new keeper after John Victor was ruled out for the remainder of the season with a knee injury. Forest initially held talks for Wolves’ Jose Sa, though they soon pivoted towards Ortega after discovering he would be more readily available.

Ortega will compete with Matz Sels for a starting place under Dyche in the coming months.

It emerged earlier this week that Forest are also chasing a blockbuster deal for Inter and Italy star Davide Frattesi.

Frattesi, McNeil also in Forest sights

Forest have struck an agreement to sign Frattesi on loan with an option to buy worth close to £35m (€40m / $48m).

The midfielder is open to the switch, while Inter have landed on Liverpool’s Curtis Jones as a possible replacement.

Although, we explained on Saturday how Forest’s swoop for Frattesi is being held up by Liverpool’s reluctance to let Jones leave.

Inter are sounding out other midfield options, but if they cannot find a suitable replacement then Forest will be unable to land Frattesi.

Sky Sports report that Forest are also showing interest in Everton winger Dwight McNeil, who has close ties with Dyche.

As with Frattesi, though, the success of Forest’s pursuit will depend on whether Everton can sign a replacement. That is becoming increasingly tricky as the deadline looms large.

Forest are always active in the market and there could be late fireworks at the club before the window is out.