Nottingham Forest storm in on Crystal Palace January transfer pans for 'brilliant' Millwall winger
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Crystal Palace have long been considered frontrunners to complete a deal to bring talented Millwall winger Romain Esse to the Premier League but the Eagles could now face competition from top flight rivals Nottingham Forest.
A fresh report from The Telegraph claims that Forest has 'regularly watched' Esse at Millwall and are weighing up a move to compete with Crystal Palace. Esse is labelled a 'long-term' target for Nottingham Forest, who are flying high in the Premier League this season and currently sit in fourth place.
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Hide AdNuno Espirito Santo's work and the potential of European football could see the club backed financially come January, which could spell trouble for Crystal Palace's hopes of recruiting Esse. It had been touted that the 19-year-old could be the next talent to follow in the footsteps of Eberechi Eze, Michael Olise and Adam Wharton in moving from the EFL to the top flight at Selhurst Park.


Despite his tender age, Esse is already a crucial player for the Lions. The winger, who is part of the England under-20 set-up, has made 21 appearances for the side this season with four goals to his name. However, the January window comes at a precarious time for Millwall with Neil Harris having just quit his head coach role in a bombshell move and a search for a new manager underway.
Crystal Palace will still be confident in striking a deal for Esse, with those rumours long established, along with being able to offer the player a short move across South London. Last week, LondonWorld reported that the club could sell forward Odsonne Edouard in January to fund other transfers. There has been talk of a buy-to-loan deal being struck, which would see Esse return to The Den to complete the current Championship season with Millwall.
Millwall aware of Premier League interest in Romain Esse
Earlier this season, Harris had been candid when speaking about Premier League interest in the player. He said: “I don’t worry about Romain’s mentality – he’s a brilliant young man. He has been schooled well here and has had a good upbringing at home. Romain just loves playing football. He wants to be on the pitch and he loves winning as well, which is important for us.
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Hide Ad“Gary [Rowett] is right – there will be a lot of interest. He’s a 19-year-old who is playing in the Championship. Romain’s focus, and he’s been told in no uncertain terms, has to be to stay in the team.
“That’s his priority focus – everything else in football will come after that. If you’re not playing regularly from the start in the Championship, then you’re never going to move up the levels. Romain has huge potential. He’s a really grounded boy with great ability. He has added to his end product this year already. If he carries on doing that, then Romain will certainly grace the Premier League at some stage.”
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