How 'bargain' Murillo serves as Nottingham Forest transfer reminder amid FFP focus

how 'bargain' murillo serves as nottingham forest transfer reminder amid ffp focus

Value for money… Forest’s Felipe and Murillo celebrate victory over West Ham

Nottingham Forest’s central defensive partnership against West Ham United quickly earned the tagline of ‘master and apprentice’.

Nuno Espirito Santo’s side recorded their first clean-sheet in the Premier League since November as the Hammers were kept at bay in a 2-0 win. And the Brazilian duo of veteran Felipe and 21-year-old Murillo were at the heart of a solid Reds back line.

It served as a reminder of how the latter is proving to be an excellent bit of business by the club. Given he arrived from Corinthians with limited senior football under his belt, the youngster has quickly made himself at home in English football.

Forest’s transfer dealings have been in the spotlight again as the club await a date for their hearing after being charged with breaching Premier League Profitability and Sustainability rules. They have not always got it right in the market, but they have notched up a few bargains.

The club-record fee for Ibrahim Sangare attracted most of the headlines last summer, but amongst the 13 additions made in that window, the Reds oversaw what are proving to be some excellent deals.

Combined, Anthony Elanga and Callum Hudson-Odoi cost less than £20 million. Less than £7m was paid to Bologna for Nicolas Dominguez, with Remo Freuler heading in the opposite direction as part of the deal. Ola Aina arrived on a free.

And Murillo also has to be up there as one of the best signings of that window, with Forest having paid just £11m to bring him to the City Ground. He is proving to be worth every penny – and then some.

Harry Redknapp hailed him as “fantastic” as he picked the defender for his Team of the Week. “He can dribble the ball, and he played some nice passes. He put in a brilliant tackle against Michail Antonio and made several good clearances,” he said.

Murillo is not yet the finished article. Areas of his game still need improvement. He will have ups and downs throughout the course of the season.

There is always a danger of building up young players only for them to struggle further down the line. Nuno’s challenge is to manage Murillo well. There is no doubt he has bags of potential. And amid a focus on the Reds’ financial situation and transfer business, he is one example of where they have got it right.

Rate Murillo’s season so far in the comments HERE

News Related

OTHER NEWS

FA confident that Man Utd starlet will pick England over Ghana

Kobbie Mainoo made his first start for Man Utd at Everton (Photo: Getty) The Football Association are reportedly confident that Manchester United starlet Kobbie Mainoo will choose to represent England ... Read more »

World Darts Championship draw throws up tricky tests for big names

Michael Smith will begin the defence of his world title on the opening night (Picture: Getty Images) The 2024 World Darts Championship is less than three weeks away and the ... Read more »

Pioneering flight to use repurposed cooking oil to cross Atlantic

For the first time a long haul commercial aircraft is flying across the Atlantic using 100% sustainable aviation fuel (SAF). A long haul commercial flight is flying to the US ... Read more »

King meets world business and finance figures at Buckingham Palace

The King has met business and finance leaders from across the world at a Buckingham Palace reception to mark the conclusion of the UK’s Global Investment Summit. Charles was introduced ... Read more »

What Lou Holtz thinks of Ohio State's loss to Michigan: 'They aren't real happy'

After Ohio State’s 30-24 loss to Michigan Saturday, many college football fans were wondering where Lou Holtz was. In his postgame interview after the Buckeyes beat Notre Dame 17-14 in ... Read more »

Darius Slay wouldn't have minded being penalized on controversial no-call

Darius Slay wouldn’t have minded being penalized on controversial no-call No matter which team you were rooting for on Sunday, we can all agree that the officiating job performed by ... Read more »

Mac Jones discusses Patriots future after latest benching

New England Patriots quarterback Mac Jones (10) Quarterback Mac Jones remains committed to finding success with the New England Patriots even though his future is up in the air following ... Read more »
Top List in the World