Explained: Why Ben Osborn left Nottingham Forest for Sheffield United
Soccer Football - Championship - Nottingham Forest vs Derby County - The City Ground, Nottingham, Britain - March 11, 2018 Nottingham Forest's Ben Osborn in action with Derby County's Andreas Weimann Action Images/Andrew Boyers EDITORIAL USE ONLY. No use with unauthorized audio, video, data, fixture lists, club/league logos or "live" services. Online in-match use limited to 75 images, no video emulation. No use in betting, games or single club/league/player publications. Please contact your account representative for further details.
Ben Osborn ended a 17-year association with Nottingham Forest this summer to join Sheffield United, and the 25-year-old explained to Notts TV why he pushed for the move. As per Transfermarkt, Osborn made 230 appearances for Forest between 2013/14 and 2018/19, but he was lured away from the City Ground due to the promise of Premier League football.
He said: “I only had a year on my contract, so it was a case of ‘am I looking to sign a new deal here?’ There’d always been a little bit of interest in quite a few of the (transfer) windows, but when a Premier League club came knocking, I had a couple of chances earlier on in my career which I didn’t go (for), I really wanted to pursue (the move to Sheffield United).”
Osborn has yet to make an appearance for Sheffield United since making the switch, however. The 25-year-old has been an unused substitute in the Blades’ last three Premier League games and is still awaiting his debut. His form fell apart for Forest during the tail-end of last season, so his departure wasn’t a major shock. The Reds’ own form had spiralled during a similar period too.
Forest have strengthened well in the transfer market, bringing in Albert Adomah and Sammy Ameobi, so they haven’t been hurt by Osborn’s departure. The English left-midfielder is now a Premier League player, but he’s yet to convince Chris Wilder that he’s deserving of a starting place. That being said, there’s still plenty of the season remaining to turn things around.