Nottingham Forest target top Celtic prospect in summer youth raid | OneFootball

Nottingham Forest Eye Future with Move for Celtic Youth Captain Jikiemi

Forest Target Promising Centre-Back from Celtic

Nottingham Forest are positioning themselves at the front of the queue for one of Scotland’s most promising youth prospects. Football Insider reports that Forest are plotting a summer move for Dara Jikiemi, the highly rated 15-year-old centre-back currently at Celtic.

Jikiemi has already made his mark, captaining Scotland’s Under-15 side, and catching the eye with his composure and defensive maturity well beyond his years. It’s understood Forest want to bring him into their academy system with a view to fast-tracking his development in England.

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A Pattern of Premier League Attraction

Forest are not alone in this strategy. Ben Doak and Rocco Vata, two former Celtic academy talents, have made the move south in recent seasons, developing their craft with the likes of Liverpool and Watford respectively.

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Celtic fans will recall the precedent—Kieran Tierney’s £25 million switch to Arsenal in 2019 marked both ambition and loss for the Glasgow side.

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Should Forest land Jikiemi, it would underline a growing trend: top English sides investing early in Scottish youth.

Our View – EPL Index Analysis

For a Forest fan, this move makes absolute sense. They’ve always prided themselves on developing talent, and Dara Jikiemi sounds like the next exciting prospect to be shaped in red. Captaining Scotland at 15? That says a lot about his leadership and character, not just his talent.

It’s clear that the club’s recruitment team is thinking smart. Instead of throwing huge money at average first-teamers, they’re investing in players who can grow into stars. It worked for clubs like Brighton and Brentford. Bringing in Jikiemi shows they’re building something sustainable, not just chasing short-term highs.

Of course, it’ll be a few years before they see him in the first team, but this is about vision. If Forest want to stay in the top half of the Premier League and build an identity, signings like this are essential.