Evangelos Marinakis' aims for Nottingham Forest upon returning to the Premier League were clear: to compete, not just survive.
That's why the Greek businessman set about filling gaps in Steve Cooper's squad with established Premier League talent and players who can have time to improve and in turn increase their value. The arrivals of Morgan Gibbs-White, Taiwo Awoniyi and Neco Williams show that the Reds wanted to beef up their ranks with stars who can earn their team money back if Cooper's men fail in their survival bid this season.
While Forest have 12 players in their ranks over the age of 28, one of them is back-up goalkeeper Wayne Hennessey and Harry Arter, Lyle Taylor and Jordan Smith are out of the picture completely. "We will give Steve and his team all the ammunition he needs in order to be competitive next season and will try not only to maintain our position in the Premier League, but to perform well because the sky's the limit," Marinakis said after promotion was confirmed last season.
