Report: Nottingham Forest identify 21-year-old as main target to save their season comes January
Nottingham Forest are ‘monitoring’ a £10 million Championship star ahead of a possible transfer bid.
According to reports, Nottingham Forest are “watching” Middlesbrough midfielder Hayden Hackney ahead of a prospective summer swoop. Forest are rumoured to be looking for “more domestic players” ahead of the January transfer window, and Hackney has been named as a possible target.
Last season, the 21-year-old had a breakout season in the Championship, making 36 league games as Boro reached the play-offs. From the center of the field, he scored three goals and assisted on four others.
Reds midfielder Lewis O’Brien is currently on loan at Middlesbrough, where he has made four league appearances so far this season. If he impressed Carrick in the coming weeks and months, he could be involved in a potential swap deal for Hackney given the players have a similar valuation.
That’s according to journalist Alan Nixon, who reports that Forest chief football officer Ross Wilson “ran the rule” over Hackney last week, adding that Forest “could make a move” in one of the next two transfer windows. The midfielder is said to be valued at around £10 million.
He has played every league game so far this season, too, though his team are already struggling in Michael Carrick’s second season at the helm. Despite that, Hackney continues to attract the attention of Forest.
Head coach Steve Cooper is already spoilt for central midfield options. He has Orel Mangala, Ibrahim Sangare, Cheikhou Kouyate, Andrey Santos, Nicolas Dominguez, Ryan Yates, Danilo and Brandon Aguilera available to him.
READ MORE:
Steve Cooper makes Nottingham Forest signings pledge amid ‘impossible’ admission
Nottingham Forest debutant Nicolas Dominguez impressed head coach Steve Cooper against Manchester City, but he is wary of integrating too many new players too quickly.
Arrival on the deadline day Dominguez stood out in the Reds’ 2-0 loss at the Etihad Stadium. Some of Forest’s other summer additions, like as midfielder Ibrahim Sangare, are taking their time settling in.
Defenders Andrew Omobamidele and Murillo, on the other hand, are yet to feature, while teenage midfielder Andrey Santos has only had one run-out so far. Cooper has stressed everyone will have a part to play, but has reiterated gelling as a team will not happen overnight.
“I thought he did well,” the Welshman said of Dominguez. “We’ve signed a lot of new players; it’s going to be impossible to just throw them all together and expect a fluid team which can compete in any Premier League game, never mind one like this.
“We’ve really got to get the balance right of integrating these players. Some of them have not even got changed today, but they are definitely going to get in our team at some stage – if they keep going.
“We’re working really strong with everyone every day, trying to get some rhythm in how we work so they understand our ways of working and how we try to play. While doing that, it’s about trying to integrate the right players at the right time and becoming the team we want to become – that is going to be a settled team with good connections and relationships on the pitch.
“Hopefully we can pick up enough points along the way while growing as we are. But there’s a lot of work to do. We’ve got to get back to the training ground; the next day is going to be really important. Hopefully, over the course of time, we can keep improving, pick up enough points along the way and progress.”
