A backup to free-scoring Chris Wood seems to be one of Nottingham Forest’s priorities in the January transfer window, with one striker catching the eye of Evangelos Marinakis.
Jamie Carragher named Wood as one of the Premier League’s best by naming him in his Premier League team of the season so far, which should come as no surprise given his 11 league goals so far.
The Kiwi’s form has come as a shock to even some of football’s most knowledgeable figures, with Gary Lineker surprised at how good Wood is following his dominating performance in Forest’s win over Everton.
Wood’s remarkable performances this season bring the inevitable worry about how the Forest squad would cope if he were to pick up an injury, leading to Nuno Espirito Santo eying a reliable backup to his striker.
Yuri Alberto is wanted by Forest as one of the most impressive backup options, but a recent report has suggested that one of the MLS’ top scorers could be another alternative for the Forest manager.
Nottingham Forest eye Petar Musa from FC Dallas
According to journalist Rudy Galetti, Nottingham Forest are in the hunt to sign Croatian striker Petar Musa, who could be a cost-effective backup to Wood.
Galetti previously reported that FC Dallas had set a price tag of over £18 million for Musa, but given that they are “open to evaluating offers”, the deal shouldn’t be a greatly expensive one for Marinakis.
Forest look to be competing with Leicester City for the signature of the 26-year-old, who scored 16 goals in 27 MLS starts last season. Whilst Leicester may be able to offer the Croatian more guaranteed playing time, Forest’s hunt for European football will likely be of keen interest to Musa.
Another benefit of a move for Musa may be related to his statistical strengths for FC Dallas last season, which could see him offering something very similar to Wood for Espirito Santo.
Petar Musa offers similar strengths to Chris Wood
Clearly, Musa’s 16 goals show that he has the capability to replicate Wood’s scoring record at Forest. When delving deeper into his stats in the MLS, though, there are more similarities between Wood and Musa.
In fact, Musa leads Wood in two key statistics, having over two more touches in the opposition box per game and also winning a much higher percentage of his aerial duels up front.
After Wood equalled Forest’s Premier League scoring record, it will be incredibly difficult for any incoming striker to offer what he does for the Forest squad. However, Musa’s statistical similarities could give him the chance to get close enough to Wood’s output with help from the Forest coaching staff.
Nottingham Forest contact MLS club over signing 16-goal striker similar to Chris Wood
