Nottingham Forest have reportedly entered advanced negotiations with Monaco over the signing of Ismail Jakobs.
Jakobs has struggled to nail down a regular starting spot for Monaco since joining from Koln two years ago, despite making 60 Ligue 1 appearances, as well as featuring in the Champions League and Europa League.
Many of those appearances have come from the substitutes bench, as Jakobs plays second fiddle to first-choice Caio Henrique.
The 23-year-old is a regular for Senegal though, and played 90 minutes in their recent 4-2 win over Brazil in June.
The Senegalese international also played in all four of his nation’s matches at the 2022 World Cup, setting up Famara Diedhou’s goal against Qatar in the group stage.
Fabrizio Romano claims that talks are progressing and the player is keen on the move, as Forest look to fill the current void at left-back.
Jakobs would join fellow Senegal teammates Cheikhou Kouyate and Moussa Niakhate at the City Ground, two players who could help him settle in if the move goes ahead.
Harry Toffolo is the only current first-team left-back at the club, and the man signed from Huddersfield Town last summer has yet to feature this pre-season after revelations came out about possible breaches of betting laws.
Renan Lodi was Forest’s regular left-back last season, after the Brazilian international arrived on loan from Atletico Madrid late in the summer transfer window.
Lodi made 28 appearances in the Premier League for Steve Cooper‘s side, but the club were priced out of a move by Atletico’s demands to let him leave permanently and the player’s wish to play European football.
Instead, the 25-year-old joined Champions League participants Marseille two weeks ago after Sead Kolasinac and Nuno Tavares left the Stade Velodrome.
The signing of Jakobs would continue the flurry of activity at Forest in late July, as Ola Aina and Anthony Elanga have already joined the club in the past week
