At any other time, Nottingham Forest chasing Keylor Navas would be viewed as a decent bit of transfer business.
A goalkeeper with vast experience and a jam-packed trophy cabinet who made more than 100 league appearances for Real Madrid before joining PSG. A three-time Champions League winner and a Costa Rica international. Navas has certainly got pedigree.
The dilemma for the Reds, though, is whether they really need him. And what the knock-on impact of signing him would be.
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Deciding whether goalkeeping reinforcements are needed this month is not an easy call to make. Moreover, Forest also have to have one eye on the summer and how they see the situation long-term.
There is some discrepancy over how long Dean Henderson may be sidelined for - not that predicted injury recovery timelines are ever absolute certainties in any case. However, earlier in the week, head coach Steve Cooper suggested it could be a four to five-week lay-off, as initially it had been feared Henderson would be absent for “a lot longer than what it’s actually going to be”.
That leaves the Reds having to weigh up various factors. The stakes are high; they are eager to maintain their positive form in the league and pull further away from the relegation zone, and the role of goalkeeper can be crucial to that. Henderson has already played a key role so far this season by making some big saves.
Wayne Hennessey, who has stepped in for him, has made some good stops, too. But he could also have done better with some of the goals he has let in.
Bring in Navas (or another goalkeeper), though, and where would that leave things? Would he become the No 1 regardless of when Henderson returns? If not, would Navas then be happy to drop to the role of substitute, behind the Manchester United loanee? Given he has not been playing for PSG and seems to want game time, you’d imagine he might not be too keen. Equally, given Henderson has spoken before about his parent club wasting a year of his career, he would surely not be happy if he ended up being second-choice, even for a short spell.
Forest also have to consider what may happen in the summer. Do they want to try to pursue a permanent deal for Henderson? He has certainly made it clear he enjoys being at the City Ground and is also a popular member of the squad. Before suffering his injury, he had been doing well. At 25, he is young in goalkeeper terms, while Navas is 36. But bringing in another goalkeeper now would suggest Henderson is unlikely to stick around.
“It’s still something we’re thinking about,” Cooper said, when asked about the possibility of signing a keeper in Monday’s pre-match press conference. “We actually thought Dean’s injury might have been initially a lot longer than what it’s actually going to be.
“He couldn’t have played in the semi-finals anyway, and unfortunately we were knocked out of the FA Cup, so there’s a bit of a break in Premier League football. We’re weighing all of that up and seeing whether it’s right to go with what we’ve got.
“Wayne played against Bournemouth at the weekend. We’ll see if we want to keep with that or whether we’re going to make a change. But we haven’t decided yet. And if we do, it’s got to be right.”
Cooper is big on making sure Forest do due diligence on any new arrivals - getting the right characters as well as the right players in. On deciding whether to bring in a goalkeeper, though, the club have a number of considerations to factor in. It is a big decision to make, and one which - whichever way it goes - will offer pointers to what happens in the long-term.
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