Jesse Lingard is on course to make his Premier League debut for Nottingham Forest - at St James' Park.
Newcastle United had started the summer eager to sign the England international but opted against breaking the club's wage structure for what would have been an expensive one-year deal. Forest done their business under the radar for Lingard and spoke to the player in London rather than the north.
He is now expected to play for Forest in a friendly against Valencia this weekend and should be in contention for a bench place or start on Tyneside. Forest boss Steve Cooper said: "He’s been brilliant on the training ground; I think everybody has raised their game a little bit, and I’m sure he’ll feature against Valencia at the weekend. "To sign a quality player like Jesse has given everybody a boost."
Speaking about Forest's desire to sign him, Lingard said: "They showed me love, every time we spoke they wanted me to come down to London to sort a deal out, and they were very aggressive with their approach, and I love that, you want someone, especially a club owner, to want you at their club."
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