Nottingham Forest want £41m “wizard” who could be their own Vini Jr

Since promotion in 2021/22 Nottingham Forest have made some excellent signings from Brazil. It has been a smart way for the club to add quality to their side from a market that fewer sides may turn to.

Of course, two of those deals have been particularly inspired. The Midlands club signed midfielder Danilo in January 2023 and defender Murillo just a few months later that summer. They joined from Palmeiras and Corinthians respectively.

Murillo has played 47 games for the club so far and has played in every single Premier League game since his debut. 23-year-old defensive midfielder Danilo has featured 50 times for Forest, scoring and assisting ten times.

However, he picked up a bad injury in the first game of this season and will be out for several months. 6 foot 8 goalkeeper Carlos Miguel is the other addition, also joining from Corinthians.

With the success they have had signing players from Brazil recently, they are thought to be looking to repeat the masterclass again in the coming months.

Forest targeting Brazilian prodigy

The player in question here is 18-year-old Flamengo winger Lorran. The Brazilian has been a target for several of Europe’s biggest clubs over the past 12 months or so and could depart the club that he has represented at age-group and first-team level.

According to an exclusive report from Ontheminute.com, the Midlands side are looking into a deal to bring the teenager to the City Ground in January. They are believed to be ‘keeping an eye’ on the man wanted by Manchester United last summer.

Indeed, Forest would not be the only Premier League side looking to bring the youngster to the club. Lorran is also a target for West Ham United, Brighton and Hove Albion and Aston Villa.

Whichever club attempts to sign the winger will have to pay his reported £41m release clause, although Flamengo could strike a deal at a lower value.

Why Lorran would be a good signing

On the face of things, 18-year-old winger Lorran does not have incredible numbers in professional football. The Flamengo number 19 has played 31 times for the club, with five goal involvements to his name. With that being said, the youngster has played just 1134 minutes, the equivalent of 12.6 full 90 minute games.

Not only that, but the Brazil under-17 international has performed well for the club’s under-20 side and has shown exactly why he is so sought after. In 19 games for the youth team, he has eight goals and two assists, an excellent return.

There are certainly comparisons that can be made between Lorran and another former Flamengo player, Vinicius Junior. The Real Madrid number seven, who finished second in the 2024 Ballon d’Or rankings, also played for the first team at the Brazilian club.

In fact, Lorran’s stats should not be read into much, given Vinicius’ numbers were also not outstanding, contributing to 19 goals in 69 games.

Despite that, Los Blancos saw obvious talent and paid £38.7m to sign him in July 2018. He is now arguably the “best player in the world”, according to compatriot Ronaldo, despite narrowly missing out on the Ballon d’Or.

Stylistically, the pair are similar, too, and the stats do not tell the whole picture, Like Vinicius, the left-footed Lorran is a direct winger, who can beat players on either the inside or outside, making him unpredictable for defenders.

He is a player who would add that classic Brazilian flair to the Forest squad. The dynamic 18-year-old he averages 3.18 completed take-ons per 90 minutes, which ranks him in the top 5% of wingers in the next 14 leagues in world football, as per FBref.

Forest’s January target is a player rated highly by the Los Blancos superstar. He called him a “Wizard” on X earlier this year, as translated in an article by beIN Sports.

In terms of attacking talents, he is arguably Flamengo’s best since Vinicius made the move to the Santiago Bernabeu. Forest will certainly be hoping Lorran can have the same impact at the City Ground should they get this deal over the line.