Nottingham Forest 'encouraged' by Man City to complete Rico Lewis deal

Nottingham Forest have received encouragement from Manchester City in their efforts to sign Rico Lewis in the summer transfer window.

The 21-year-old has been on the radar of the recruitment team at the City Ground for a while now, and they may now be prepared to make a formal move for his signature.

The versatile full-back made just 11 Premier League appearances last season, having fallen out of favour under Pep Guardiola despite a strong start to his senior career.

Now, former Man United chief scout Mick Brown has told Football Insider that Man City are ready to let Lewis move on as he is not likely to be part of Enzo Maresca's plans.

Maresca has been assessing his squad at the Etihad and is now prepared to let players move on to clear space and raise funds for reinvestment.

Following the arrival of Oliver Glasner at Forest, meanwhile, the club are aiming to be proactive and ambitious in the transfer market and are now lining up moves.

Could Nottingham Forest make a move for Rico Lewis?

Football Insider revealed on 8 July that Lewis is firmly on Nottingham Forest's radar after he came close to joining the club last summer, before a change of heart.

He signed a new fice-year contract extension at the start of last season, but that is unlikely to deter his suitors given that City are now open to letting him leave.

Forest are believed to have been placed on alert by his potential availability and are prepared to revisit last summer's interest to finally get a move for Lewis over the line.

"Rico Lewis is going to be an interesting one to watch this summer," Brown told Football Insider.

"Like you said, he was really impressive for Man City when he first came into the side and looked like he was going to establish himself as a regular player there.

"But he hardly played last season under Guardiola, and I don't think the change of manager is going to help in that respect, because he's quite a specialist player.

"Is he a right-back? A left-back? A central midfielder? I'm sure he can play all three, but Man City clearly didn't think he was at the required level in any of them.

"So I expect he's not going to be part of Enzo Maresca's plans, and that opens the door for other clubs to make moves if they can offer him more regular minutes.

"Nottingham Forest are the ones being mentioned, they've been keen on him for a long time, so this will be encouraging for them that he could be allowed to move.

"Oliver Glasner will probably play a big part in their recruitment, but they are looking to spend big and bring in a lot of top-class players, so Lewis will be very much on their radar."

How does Lewis feel about leaving Man City?

Whether or not Nottingham Forest can get a deal for Lewis over the line may ultimately depend on the player's stance after he turned down the chance to move last year.

However, after hardly featuring under Guardiola last season, there is a feeling he will be more open to leaving the Etihad in search of more regular game time.

Former Tottenham scout Bryan King told Football Insider on 20 July that Lewis should push for a move away from Man City in an attempt to reignite his career.

With Man City now expected to be open to his departure, a move to Nottingham Forest seems increasingly likely, with all parties keen to reach an agreement.

Nottingham Forest are not the only club interested in signing the defender, with Everton also keen, and he will be offered a number of opportunities to mvoe on.