Nottingham Forest: Gonzalo Montiel update

The Argentina World Cup hero is on his way to the City Ground.

Nottingham Forest’s pursuit of Sevilla defender Gonzalo Montiel has been well-documented and a big update has now emerged, courtesy of journalist Fabrizio Romano.

Who is Gonzalo Montiel?

The 26-year-old was something of an unknown amongst British football fans until relatively recently, even though he was a perfectly solid performer for Sevilla, having arrived at the La Liga side from River Plate back in 2021.

That all changed at the 2022 World Cup, however, as he tasted glory with Argentina, famously stroking home the winning penalty in the shootout victory over France in the final. It was a truly iconic moment for the country, as they won the competition for the first time since 1986, and it etched Montiel’s name into Argentine folklore forever.

 

At club level, a move away from Sevilla – where he makes £20k-per-week – has looked increasingly likely this summer, however, and it is Forest who have emerged as the strong favourites to snap him up for some time now.

The Reds are still looking for defensive reinforcements and the right-back has stood out as a good option to battle the likes of Serge Aurier and Neco Williams for playing time this season, allowing Steve Cooper to rotate his squad and keep it fresh the longer the campaign goes on.

Now, a fresh update has emerged – one that suggests Montiel could be announced as a Forest player sooner rather than later, as the City Ground welcomes yet another new face to the club.

Will Nottingham Forest sign Gonzalo Montiel?

Taking to Twitter, Romano provided a significant update regarding the Reds’ move for Montiel this summer, with the transfer now very close to being completed and medical potentially on the cards imminently:

“Nottingham Forest are closing in on Gonzalo Montiel deal – agreement on personal terms being finalised then medical on Monday. Deal will cost €11m (£9.4m), as @CLMerlo has reported.”

This is great news for Forest, at a time when they need to build on last season’s Premier League survival and become a genuinely established top-flight club again, rather than finding themselves battling for their lives come the spring.

While Montiel may not be the most explosive of full-backs, he is an experienced head with lots of defensive nous, having made 72 appearances for Sevilla and won 23 caps for Argentina, scoring once for his country, aside from his aforementioned penalty heroics last winter.

That moment back in December may have given him an extra winning mentality – he also scored the winning spot-kick in last year’s Europa League final – which should stand him in good stead and possibly impact on the squad’s mentality when he arrives, with World Cup winners a rare commodity in football.

 

Montiel could come in as a less flamboyant but more solid alternative to Aurier at right-back, having averaged 1.5 clearances and 1.3 tackles per game in last season’s Champions League, as well as registering three assists in La Liga in 2022/23.

These are exactly the kind of signings that will make Forest strong moving forward, and at 26, there is no reason why the defender can’t be a key man for the next five or six years.