Soccer Football - Championship Play-Off Final - Brentford v Swansea City - Wembley Stadium, London, Britain - May 29, 2021 Swansea City manager Steve Cooper Action Images via Reuters/Matthew Childs
Nottingham Forest are reportedly interested in signing Manchester City full-back Issa Kabore, according to The Athletic.Â
The lowdown: Kabore profiled
Signed from Belgian top-flight club KV Mechelen in 2020, Man City immediately allowed the right-back to return on loan before sanctioning a temporary spell at French Ligue 1 side Troyes last season.
As things stand the 21-year-old is yet to make a single senior outing for the Premier League champions but remains a highly-rated prospect, having been named the best young player at this year’s Africa Cup of Nations.
Now as Forest boss Steve Cooper seeks an alternative to the reportedly Tottenham-bound Djed Spence after the youngster enjoyed a glittering loan spell at the City Ground, Kabore could be the chosen one…
The latest: Reds keen
As per The Athletic, Forest are believed to be ‘monitoring’ Kabore ahead of a potential summer swoop.
It’s claimed that the 27-cap Burkina Faso defender is viewed as a player with ‘similar character to Spence’ and is ‘hungry to prove himself’ to the top level.
The report makes no mention of a fee for the youngster hailed as ‘outstanding’ by European football expert Antonio Mango, who even tipped him as a potential Kyle Walker successor.
The verdict: Test the water
Valued at just £3.6million but under contract until 2025 (Transfermarkt), Kabore is expected to spend time out on loan once again next season due to being behind two world-class right full-backs in Walker and the versatile Joao Cancelo in Manchester.
During the 2021/22 season, the right-back earned a 6.60 Sofascore rating whilst winning 4.7 duels and completing 1.5 successful dribbles on average per league game, less than Spence’s 5.8 duels and 1.8 completed dribbles.
Capable of operating as a right-sided midfielder as well as a right-back, Kabore appears ideally suited to play in Cooper’s system as a wing-back and as such the City Ground hierarchy should perhaps test the waters with a temporary move, including an option to buy in case he shines in Spence’s shoes next season.
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