It goes without saying that Nottingham Forest has made significant investments since making a comeback to the Premier League in 2022–2023.
After defeating Huddersfield Town 1-0 at Wembley in the play-off final, the Reds secured promotion under Steve Cooper. However, the team still has to make large acquisitions in order to compete in the top flight of England.
The team has made the most signings of any team in the premier league since promotion—34—but their selections haven’t always clicked, as Forest has seen a significant player turnover in recent months.
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The Reds’ heavy expenditure was evident in the Championship despite the player churn. In the summer of 2018, the club spent £6 million on seasoned striker Lewis Grabban.
But it was another player’s singing that summer that drew the attention of rival division supporters as well as Forest supporters.
Joao Carvalho’s statistics at Nottingham Forest: During the 2018–19 season, owner Evangelo Marinakis spent about £20 million on players. The majority of that money was spent on the promising young talent Joao Carvalho, a Portuguese offensive midfielder who cost £13 million to sign at the City Ground.
The fan base saw enormous optimism in the deal, believing that Forest’s skill set would help them break out of their nearly two-decade Premier League ban.
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Though he beat the club record set by Britt Assombalonga, who signed with the Reds for £5.5 million in 2014, he was unable to live up to his high price tag and failed to leave a lasting impression during his time there.
Carvalho would make 75 appearances for Forest during his disastrous three-and-a-half years at the City Ground, scoring eight goals and providing nine assists.
In 2020–21, he would fall in the hierarchy, and the midfielder would later team up with former Reds prodigy Arvin Appiah at Almeria on loan. It was another fruitless season, as he would make 36 appearances without managing to score a single goal.
Carvalho would not leave a lasting impression on heroic manager Cooper during the promotion-winning campaign; after a dismal tenure in the East Midlands, Forest trimmed their losses on the Portuguese player and sold him to Marinakis’ other club, Olympiacos, for an undisclosed sum.
The market value of Joao Carvalho in 2024
Carvalho, who left Forest more than two years ago, has struggled to put on any standout performances. In those two years, he has only made 42 appearances, the most of which have come off the substitutes bench.
Due to his lack of playing time, the midfielder—dubbed the “colossal flop” by Ryan Dilks on the Second Tier Podcast—has seen his market worth drastically decline, with Transfermarkt pegging him at a pitiful £1.2 million.
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Carvalho is presently valued £3 million less than Divock Origi, who is currently on loan from Forest. According to Transfermarkt, the Belgian is only worth £4.2 million following an unproductive season at the City Ground in which he has only scored once.
The Portuguese star was a fan favorite when he was at Nottingham, but the club made the right decision to let him go, and after winning the Premier League and promotion, they quickly moved past him.
