Nottingham Forest now on the verge of signing Napoli striker Lorenzo Lucca

Nottingham Forest are now on the verge of signing a new striker, who is ‘ready to say yes’ to a move to the City Ground.

Forest eyeing new striker despite Igor Jesus praise

Igor Jesus received high praise from Pep Guardiola at the end of December, with the Manchester City boss saying: “Forest has an incredible team, the way they play is unbelievable. Igor Jesus wins every ball he contests. They are a top team.

“They were almost in the Champions League for one or two games last season and now they are in European competitions. A fantastic team and a difficult field to visit, especially in winter.”

However, while the Brazilian has four goals to his name in the Europa League, he hasn’t been quite as prolific in the Premier League, with his only goal of the campaign coming in a 1-0 victory against Wolverhampton Wanderers last month.

Despite Guardiola’s plaudits, the Tricky Trees remain in 17th place, just five points clear of the bottom three, with West Ham United closing the gap as a result of their 2-1 victory against Tottenham Hotspur on Saturday.

With that in mind, it would make sense to bring in some attacking firepower during the current transfer window, and Nottingham Forest are now on the verge of signing Napoli striker Lorenzo Lucca, as he is ‘ready to say yes’ to a move to the City Ground.

That is according to reports from Italy (via Sport Witness), with Forest recently agreeing to pay a €1m (£867k) loan fee, and the deal also includes an option to make Lucca’s stay permanent for €35m (£30m).

Sean Dyche‘s side have now made a ‘breakthrough’ in their pursuit of the Italian, who could be an exciting addition to the squad, despite a lack of game time since moving to Napoli.

Lucca could be exciting signing for Forest

Former Inter Milan boss Simone Inzaghi made it clear he was a fan of the ex-Udinese star last season, describing him as a “great player”, while also adding: “He’s in good form. And not just in the last little while. He’s been doing well for a long time at Udinese.”

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It is no wonder Inzaghi is an admirer of the 25-year-old, given that he was a regular goalscorer for Udinese, scoring a combined 20 goals across the 2023-24 and 2024-25 Serie A campaigns.

The five-time Italy international hasn’t hit the ground running at Napoli this season, failing to score in his opening four Champions League games, and often being limited to appearances as a substitute in the Serie A.

However, at 6 foot 7, Lucca could be a real focal point for Nottingham Forest in attack, and the striker’s goal record at Udinese, during which time he received more regular game time, is encouraging.