September 30 1999

Forest After Everton Defender: It is rumoured that Forest are after Everton defender John O'Kane. O'Kane is currently struggling to get into the the Toffee's first team squad, and has just spent a loan period at Burnley. Forest had scouts watching him earlier this week when he appeared in the reserves against Bolton. 

September 27 1999

Platt Wants Wright Longer: David Platt is believed to be looking into ways to keep on-loan striker Ian Wright for at least a third month. Wright has just started his second months loan at Forest, and apart from his sending off against Wolves last week his influence on the squad has been positive.

It is also rumoured that Platt may be considering a permanent move for the striker, if not then he wants to keep him as long as possible while he looks for a permanent replacement.

Crossley Back For Barnsley: It looks like Mark Crossley will be set to return for Friday night's game at The City Ground against Barnsley. The injury, a damaged ankle, occurred at Ashton Gate last Wednesday, but is not as bad as originally feared.

September 25 1999

Reds Want Rogers: Liverpool are rumoured to be after left-back Alan Rogers. The 22 year old moved to Forest from Tranmere two years ago for �2m and Forest are reportedly asking �4.5m for him. Liverpool are interested in paying around �3.5m.

Liverpool scout, Alex Miller was at the Reebok stadium today. He saw Forest lose 3-2 but also saw Alan Rogers set up both goals for Forest. 

September 24 1999

Injury Worries Deepen: Forest's injury worries ahead of Saturday's game against Bolton are getting worse all the time.

Currently Forest's list of injured players reads almost like a match team sheet and includes the following: Riccardo Scimeca (knee), Steve Chettle (back), Salvatore Matrecano (back) and Moreno Mannini (hamstring), Andy Johnson (Achilles), Chris Bart-Williams (thigh), Burns (thigh), Platt (hamstring), Gianluca Petrachi (hamstring) Steve Melton and after Wednesday night Mark Crossley (ankle).

Matrecano and Petrachi look set to make a return on Saturday, but Chettle and Scimeca both look doubtful, the rest of the list are long term injuries. 

September 21 1999

Draper Still Keen: Mark Draper has reportedly  issued a "come and get me" call to Forest. Draper, who yesterday turned down the chance to come to Forest on loan is looking for a permanent move.

He said: "Obviously if a club like Forest are interested in a permanent deal then I will speak to them. I have made it clear to Villa that I want to get on with my career because things here are limited.

"I want something more permanent than just a loan but I am willing to talk to clubs with a mind to a permanent move." 

September 20 1999

Draper: "No To Loan": David Platt is now looking elsewhere in a bid to strengthen his depleted midfield after Mark Draper is understood to have turned down the chance for a loan move to Forest.

Platt's midfield has been suffering recently as the casualty list grows each week. Andy Johnson, Chris Bart-Williams, Ian Woan and Steve Melton have all been out for some time now, and Platt himself was only a sub for the Walsall game after being out for several weeks with a groin strain. This week Gianluca Petrachi was taken off against Bristol City with a possible hamstring injury and on Sunday, promising newcomer John Burns went off during the first half against Wolves with a suspected calf strain.

September 19 1999

Forest Linked With Draper: Several newspapers are today linking Aston Villa's out of favour Mark Draper with a loan move to Forest. Initially thought to be one month with a view to making the move permanent. It is understood that Draper has already turned down the chance of a loan move to Wolves because he wants to try and force his way back into John Gregory's plans at Villa.

September 17 1999

Wright To Replace Marlon: It looks like Ian Wright will return to the first team for Sunday's game against Wolves. Marlon Harewood, who replaced Wright in Wednesday's game against Bristol City looks set to be back on the bench despite playing well and scoring a goal.

Meanwhile injury worries will be David Platt's main problem in the build-up to Sunday's game. Platt  is hopeful that Riccardo Scimeca will be available, despite retiring from Wednesday's against Bristol City with a hamstring problem. Scimeca is reported to have  felt his hamstring tighten and was taken off at half-time as a precaution.
Petrachi, on the other hand,  is a major worry after being forced to quit Wednesday's  game with a hamstring injury. It is unlikely that he will be fit  in time for Sunday's game. This could be a major blow for the Forest midfield as Chris Bart-Williams, Andy Johnson, Steve Melton, Platt himself and now Petrachi have all suffered long term blows.

The rest of the squad for Sunday should be much the same as faced Bristol and Swindon.

September 16 1999

Wright To Stay On: Rumours on Ian Wright's future are gathering momentum on the Internet at the moment. The latest being that Harry Redknapp has given permission for his loan to Forest to be extended until the end of the season. With little chance of first team football at West Ham it is thought that Wright will be only to pleased with the deal.

September 14 1999

Carlton In Limbo: Carlton Palmer is currently in limbo as he waits to hear whether or not Sheffield Wednesday will pay the �500,000 fee for him. Owls manager Danny Wilson is currently one of the bookies favourites to be the next manager to lose his job, so it may be that the board are not willing to let him spend money at the present time.

September 13 1999

Selection Headache For Platt: David Platt is finding himself with a bit of a selection headache ahead of  Wednesday's Worthington Cup game against Bristol City. He can't play Ian Wright because Harry Redknapp does not want him to become cup-tied, so he must decide between Marlon Harewood and Bernard Allou who scored a spectacular goal against Mansfield Town in first round.

He is also monitoring Steve Chettle's fitness after he suffered concussion at Swindon on Saturday and was unable to take part in the second half of the game.

Thierry Bonalair could also find himself taking some part in Wednesday's game as he has now recovered from his Achilles injury.

Certain not to play on Wednesday due to long-term injuries are Chris Bart-Williams, Steve Melton, Andy Johnson and Moreno Mannini.

September 10 1999

Palmer Deal Collapsing: Carlton Palmer's  move to Sheffield Wednesday appears to be on the verge of collapsing after the Owls rejected a �750,000 price tag.
Wednesday chiefs feel that the figure is too high for a 34-year-old and unless Forest are prepared to accept a lower fee, it looks as though Palmer will not be returning to Hillsborough.

Funny really, the Owls rejecting Palmer because the price is too high, after all they are asking the ludicrous sum of �2.7million for Andy Booth, a striker who can't even get into the first team. Nothing like a bit of hypocrisy is there?

September 9 1999

Burns Keeps His Place: It is rumoured that John Burns will keep his place in the Forest line-up for this Saturday's game against Swindon Town. Burns made his first team debut in last Saturday's 4-1 win over Walsall at The City Ground, and overall the youngster made an impact on the team with a confident performance.

September 8 1999

Stern Linked To Germany: Forest now look  like outsiders to sign striker Stern John from Columbus Crew. The latest talk is that  he's close to a move to Germany.
David Platt is said to have been keeping tabs on the player for some time now. But the on the continent the word is that he's close to agreeing a deal with a Bundesliga club in Germany.

Media Group Linked To Forest: It is understood that Forest have been approached by a large media company about the possibility of investing in the club.

The company concerned has not been named nut is understood to be either ONDigital Carlton Granada or NTL - NOT BSkyB as early speculation suggested.

Forest Chief executive Phil Soar admitted that an approach had been made by a media company but said that discussions had been "very tentative".

"There have been discussions, but there is certainly nothing in the offing. The talks were friendly but very tentative. They weren't in the last couple of months and weren't in the period in which Leeds United, for example, had their approach."

September 7 1999

Palmer On His Way Soon: It looks like Carlton Palmers Forest days are numbered as he moves closer to a deal with Sheffield Wednesday that could see him move back into The Premiership. The midfielder was linked with both Sheffield clubs last week but the Blades' lost interest after it was reported that they couldn't afford Palmer's alleged wage demands of around �15,000 a week.
The wage demands should not be a big problem to the Owls, who are desperate to sort out their midfield after a disastrous start to the season.

Forest After Full-back: Forest are rumoured to be leading the chase for Bristol City's Canadian international left-back Jim Brennan.
Forest, find themselves in front after Portsmouth boss Alan Ball dropped out of the race after his �750,000 bid was rejected by the second division club.
The likelihood is that Forest - Bristol City's forthcoming Worthington Cup opponents - would provide a more attractive solution as Brennan is keen to play at the highest level possible.
The 22 year old has 18 months left on his contract at Ashton Gate and City don't want to lose him. Brennan was the club's Young Player of the Year last season, and last week scored his first international goal for Canada against Jamaica.

Platt On Comeback Trail: David Platt is set to continue his comeback tonight for the Forest reserves. He will be making the short trip down the A52 to The Baseball Ground when Forest reserves take on Derby Reserves. 

Platt, who suffered a groin strain in pre-season, has been battling to get match fit. He made a 45 minute appearance for the reserves last week against Chelsea, and he game on for about five minutes at the end of Saturday's win over Walsall.

The  player-boss believes that he's still  a couple of weeks short of being able to play a full first team game, but is hoping that 90 minutes for the reserves tonight at Derby will move him that little bit closer.

September 6 1999

Dougie Pleads For Wright: Dougie Freedman is leading the players in urging the Forest board to break the bank and keep Ian Wright at The City Ground.

Wright took his goals tally to two in three games on Saturday and was inspirational to the rest of the team as Forest beat Walsall 4-1.

Both Platt and Hammers boss Redknapp have said that Wright will be returning to Upton Park when his one month loan is over.

But his new strike partner believes Forest should splash out to try and keep the 35-year-old former England star. Freedman said: "It would be a big blow if Ian did leave."

"I would implore Forest to do what they can to keep hold of any player who is worth keeping. They should do their utmost to keep Ian."

Freedman then added: "Ian is one of the best players I've ever played with. He's bought a whole new dimension to my game. He gives me advice and never stops talking on the pitch. 

"It was daunting for me when he first came to the club. He has been one of the best players in England for the last 10 years.

"I never really thought he would join us. I'm not being disrespectful to Forest but I didn't think he would leave the Premier League."

David Platt admitted later: "If Ian gets us five goals then we would have to have a good look at the situation and see what we can do. Ian has bought us time and stopped us having to make any premature signings."

September 5 1999

Wednesday For Palmer: Soccernet are reporting that negotiations between Forest and Sheffield Wednesday are at an advanced stage in the proposed move of Carlton Palmer back to Wednesday.

Forest are understood to want striker Andy Booth as part of the deal but so far the clubs have failed to agree a price for Booth.

Even if negotiations for Booth fail it is believed that Palmer will go back to Wednesday in the next few days.

Wright To Go: Forest fans will be very disappointed to read in today's News Of The World that Davis Platt has said Ian Wright will not be staying past the end of his months loan.

Wright made an instant impact in his debut game against QPR last week, and even though he has only played three games for Forest his influence on the team has become very apparent.

Harry Redknapp has also said that he wants Wright back when the loan deal finishes as he needs him when The Hammers start their UEFA Cup campaign in a few weeks time.

September 2 1999

Palmer to Cut Deal With Blades: The following article has appeared in several papers today:

Blades manager Adrian Heath wants former England midfielder Carlton Palmer as his right-hand man at Sheffield United.

Heath is ready to offer Palmer the position of player-coach at the First Division club. Forest have said they will let the player go if they can recoup the majority of the �1.1 million the paid for the player last season.

Blades chairman Mike McDonald expects the deal to be concluded before Saturday's home game with Crystal Palace.

Heath's first choice was Sammy Lee, but he failed to persuade the former Liverpool midfield star to quit his post at Anfield.

September 1 1999

Platt Makes Comeback: David Platt made a surprise comeback last night when he came on as a substitute for the reserve team. The reserves were playing at Chelsea and lost the game 2-1.

Platt has been sidelined since the start of the season after aggravating a groin injury he originally had a year ago. he has made a quicker recovery than anyone expected and provided he suffers no adverse reaction to last nights game he could well be named as a substitute for the game against Walsall on Saturday.

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