Nottingham Forest have made an extraordinary start to the season. Nuno Espirito Santo has guided his side to a remarkable fifth in the Premier League at the November international break, with 19 points to their name. They are outside of a top four spot on goal difference.
Impressively, the men in Garibaldi Red have lost just two games all season. Both of those defeats have come at the City Ground, losing to Fulham 1-0 in September and, most recently, suffering a 3-1 defeat against Newcastle United.
Of their five wins so far, the three points they got at Anfield was certainly the most impressive, especially with Liverpool sitting top of the table.
There have been several standout players for Forest this season, but perhaps none more so than Chris Wood.
Wood’s stats in 2024/25
It has been a superb campaign so far for experienced Forest centre-forward Wood. The 32-year-old has already scored eight goals this term, having played just 11 games. He is just six goals away from equalling his best-ever Premier League season, with a maximum of 27 games to go.
There is currently just one player who has scored more goals than Wood this season in the top flight of English football. Unsurprisingly, that man is Erling Haaland, who has found the back of the net 12 times.
Most goals in 2024/25 PL so far | ||
|---|---|---|
Player | Club | Goals |
Erling Haaland | Manchester City | 12 |
Chris Wood | Nottingham Forest | 8 |
Bryan Mbeumo | Brentford | 8 |
Mohamed Salah | Liverpool | 8 |
Cole Palmer | Chelsea | 7 |
Yoane Wissa | Brentford | 7 |
Stats from Premier League | ||
Wood’s best month this season was October. The New Zealand international scored four of his eight goals during that period, which was enough to earn him the Premier League’s Player of the Month award. Nuno was the recipient of the Manager of the Month for October, too.
As per FBref, the striker is ninth in the list across Europe’s big five leagues when it comes to the biggest overachievement of expected goals. Indeed, his tally for that particular metric is just 4.5xG, meaning he has a difference of 3.5 between his expedited goals and his actual goals scored. He is simply deadly in front of goal.
It has been an incredible start to the season for Wood and his side. However, Forest might well look to spur him on further by strengthening the striker department and adding competition to continue bringing the best out of their talisman this season.
Nottingham Forest’s search for a striker
The player in question here is Brazilian striker Yuri Alberto. According to a report from Trivela earlier this week, a move for the striker ‘has been speculated. by the Midlands side. The report suggests that Forest would have to pay £25m to sign one of the most in-form strikers in Brazilian football.
It is fair to say that the striker has been on fire this season for his side, Corinthians. In 53 games in all competitions, the Brazil international has scored 26 goals and has six assists to his name.
That includes an impressive nine goals in ten games in the Copa Libertadores.
It certainly seems like the striker could keep Wood on his toes. He clearly knows where the back of the net is, and was described as a “complete forward” by football talent scout Jacek Kulig. He averages 0.6 goals and assists per game at this stage, slightly less than Forest’s experienced number 11, who averages 0.72.
The Midlands club have already brought players into the club from Corinthians in recent seasons. Last summer, they signed defender Murillo for £15m, and this summer signed 6 foot 8 goalkeeper Carlos Miguel for £3.4m. The centre-back, in particular, has been a great success in Garibaldi Red so far and has seen his value skyrocket in the process.
Given those past negotiations, it might not be too difficult of a deal to complete.
This deal could be a very smart move from Forest. Not only would they be signing a proven goalscorer who can provide real competition to Wood, but adding to the talented crop of Brazilian players – such as Murillo – at the club would also represent a coup for the present and future, especially if they can sell him for healthy profit in the years to come.
For just £25m, it certainly seems as though Yuri Alberto would be an excellent addition to a Forest squad who are performing so well, and could get their biggest stars to raise their levels even more.
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