Why Nottingham Forest would be better off avoiding Sergio Oliveira

According to A Bola (h/t Nottinghamshire Live), Nottingham Forest are weighing up a loan deal for FC Porto midfielder Sergio Oliveira, who has slipped down the pecking order this season.

As per the report, the 27-year-old has struggled for regular playtime under manager Sergio Conceicao at the Estadio do Dragao this term despite having recovered from an ankle injury suffered in the Champions League qualifiers earlier in the campaign.

Oliveira has made only four appearances in the Liga NOS so far, starting just once, while playing just 16 minutes in Porto’s Europa League group stage campaign, and he now looks set for yet another loan exit in January, having spent the second half of the 2018-19 season on loan at PAOK in Greece.

Image result for sergio oliveira" — Sergio Oliveira hasn’t been able to establish himself as a regular at Porto since his debut way back in 2009 (Getty Images)

The central midfielder, who has been at Porto since his childhood, has never really managed to establish himself as a regular fixture at the club, clocking up just 79 appearances across all competitions since his professional debut back in 2009.

The 3-cap Portuguese international has previously spent time on loan at Penafiel, Beira-Mar and Pacos Ferreira in his homeland while also going through temporary stints at various other clubs like Nantes, PAOK and Mechelen across the continent.

Now, as per the report, Nottingham Forest have emerged as a potential loan destination for Sergio Oliveira in January, with Sabri Lamouchi expecting plenty of arrivals and departures before the transfer deadline at the end of the month.

The report adds that bringing in a new striker to release the goalscoring burden on Lewis Grabban continues to be a top priority for the Reds, who are currently placed 4th in the standings and very much in the playoff mix in the Championship.

With Wolves loanee Rafa Mir looking set for an exit from the City Ground following a disappointing first half of the campaign, the two-time European champions have been linked with several strikers like Dwight Gayle, Che Adams, Glenn Murray and Lukas Jutkiewicz, as the Reds look to boost their chances of promotion. (h/t Nottinghamshire Live)

Indeed, Forest need to address their lack of depth in the attack during the mid-season trading period and while their interest in a new striker certainly makes sense, it is difficult to explain the club’s links with another central midfielder.

Central midfield is probably one area where Lamouchi doesn’t really need to make any further additions midway through the campaign, given that the likes of Ben Watson and Tiago Silva have formed a reliable pairing in the middle of the park in the manager’s preferred 4-2-3-1 system.

Samba Sow, who impressed early in the campaign, has returned from his hamstring problem to reclaim his place in the playing eleven with a string of solid displays in recent weeks.

Moreover, academy graduate Ryan Yates and Benfica loanee Alfa Semedo have also done a decent job whenever they have been called upon by the manager.

As per the scout report on Sergio Oliveira published by the Nottinghamshire Live, the 27-year-old excels with his passing and has the flexibility to play in central and defensive roles in the middle of the park. He is adept at breaking up the play with tackles and has a decent eye for goal.

Notwithstanding the fact that Oliveira has a wealth of experience under his belt at the highest level, there is hardly any evidence to suggest that he could be a massive upgrade on Forest’s existing options, given that they already have players with similar attributes.

Verdict

With Sow, Yates, Watson, Semedo and Silva all competing for two spots week in, week out, bringing in another midfielder like Oliveira, who has been short of game time this season, would add very little value to the ranks.

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All in all, Nottingham Forest completing a loan deal for the Porto outcast would simply be a waste of valuable resources that can be better utilized in improving other areas of their squad.