Ousmane Diomande to Nottingham Forest: Insider suggests the real reason for delayed deal

The delays to Nottingham Forest's move to sign Sporting CP centre-back Ousmane Diomande were likely down to the player's agent rather than the two clubs.

That is according to former Everton chief executive Keith Wyness, speaking exclusively to Football Insider, who believes that the hold-up was due to the hidden fees behind the deal.

Forest confirmed the Ivorian's arrival for £34.3million on Tuesday, but the deal had looked as though it had fallen through last week.

Wyness warned that U-turns like that are extremely common when it comes to transfers, and suggested that it was likely due to Diomande's agent being "overly aggressive" with the fees he wanted for his services.

The Reds have now got their pursuit of the 22-year-old over the line, and have bolstered Oliver Glasner's backline ahead of the new campaign.

Diomande has become just their second signing of the summer, and their first with a fee attached after the free transfer for Xaver Schlager.

Nottingham Forest needed 'quiet period' to seal deal

Everton’s former chief Wyness – who served as CEO at Goodison Park between 2004 and 2009 and now runs a football consultancy advising elite clubs – believes that Forest needed a "quiet period" to help get the transfer over the line.

He believes that while reports last week suggested that the deal was in danger of collapsing, in reality, the Reds were continuing to work with Diomande and his entourage behind the scenes.

Speaking on the latest edition of Football Insider's Inside Track podcast, he explained why the defender's agent would have been largely responsible for the delay.

"I think when these sorts of things stall it's normally what I would call about the plumbing of the deal in terms of agents fees, sell-ons, and payment structures," Wyness said.

"If there is an agreement in principle these things can normally get solved over time but it does take that quiet period to work with the agents behind the scenes. 

"It could be an agent being overly aggressive on their fees, which is quite common believe me, and it could be just the way that they are coming across for the payments as well. 

"It's quite common in a deal like this to have a little bit of back and forth on those sort of situations."

Forest well-placed to hijack West Ham deal

Football Insider revealed last weekend that Forest are well-placed to hijack West Ham's attempted move to sign Celtic midfielder Arne Engels.

The Hammers have recently seen two bids for the Belgian knocked back, but Forest's interest remains after a series of offers back in January.

The East Midlands outfit are expected to make an attempt to hijack the deal in the coming weeks, with Engels still a player that they seriously admire.

Celtic are growing increasingly resigned to losing the 22-year-old, who is keen to take his next steps in his career in England.