Yohan Benalouane has been linked with a move to Olympiacos this summer, just five months after joining the club, but Martin O’Neill should hear out their proposal as he needs to find a way to trim the first-team squad ahead of the 2019/20 season.
Nottingham Forest have a bloated side, especially in defence – Michael Dawson, Alexander Milosevic, Benalouane, Joe Worrall, Michael Hefele, Tobias Figueiredo – and could let one or two players leave in the coming weeks to free up some of the wage bill.
Hefele is one player with an uncertain future as he struggled for form during the first-half of his debut season and spent the second-half sidelined with an achilles injury. Michael Dawson is another, with the veteran also being injured for most of 2019.
Benalouane isn’t guaranteed a spot in the side next season with all the competition for places. He’s 32 and has just one year remaining on his deal at the City Ground. In his 14 appearances for Forest last season, the Tunisian international won just four times, picked up seven yellow cards and was given two red.
Forest won four and lost one of the five games Benalouane was suspended for and kept three clean sheets. With the 32-year-old at the back, however, Forest shipped 20 goals and shut out only three sides. O’Neill may not need the defender next season, so cashing in this summer could be a sensible move.
