Nottingham Forest’s development over the last few years under the ownership of Evangelos Marinakis has been nothing short of sensational, ending their 23-year exile from the Premier League.
The Greek shipping magnate has transformed the club on and off the pitch, looking unrecognisable from when he took the reins back in the summer of 2017.
Even in recent years, after the Reds secured promotion under Steve Cooper, he’s invested over £250m into new players giving the club every chance of being competitive in England’s top flight.
The City Ground is now home to numerous international stars, including £25m signing Morgan Gibbs-White who has taken his career to the next level in the East Midlands, leading to an England call-up, making him the first player since Stuart Peace to achieve the feat.
It’s a stark contrast from life under the previous ownership, with the club often posing as a laughing stock to many around the country after years of awful decisions conducted by the hierarchy.
Fawaz Al-Hasawi’s time as Nottingham Forest owner
Kuwaiti businessman Fawaz Al-Hasawi was seen as a saviour by many on Trentside after taking over the club following the tragic death of Nigel Doughty back in 2012.
The 56-year-old arrived with huge ambitions to take the club back to the Premier League within five years, but his time at the helm was a disaster, creating more problems than he solved.
He sacked manager Sean O’Driscoll during his first year in charge despite being a couple of points outside the play-offs, before appointing Alex McLeish, who would only last 40 days in the role.
Al-Hasawi would also spend big upon the appointment of club legend Pearce in 2014, but doing so in an erratic manner which broke FFP rules, with Forest enduring numerous windows under a transfer ban.
Such a period resulted in the loss of key players, dropping the Reds closer and closer to the relegation zone, with attendances dropping as low as 17,000 for some fixtures after his dismal running of the club.
The former owner had seven different managers during his five years in charge of the club, often leading to a revolving door at the City Ground – with no structure of continuity in place, leading to their decline.
His final boss during his time as owner was Mark Warburton, with the former Brentford and Rangers boss securing survival on the final day against Ipswich Town – saving the Reds from dropping into League One – potentially allowing for the success that has occurred in recent times.
Fawaz eventually sold up to now owner Marinakis in 2017, with the Greek doing unbelievable work in turning the club around into an established top-flight outfit in just a handful of years.
It’s safe to say the club conducted excellent business in offloading one talent who arrived during the ownership of Fawaz – especially considering his drop in stock over the last couple of seasons.
The player who Nottingham Forest struck gold offloading
Striker Britt Assombalonga arrived in a £5.5m deal from Peterborough in the summer of 2014, a then club-record transfer, forming an excellent partnership with Michail Antonio during that campaign.
The aforementioned pair combined for 42 goals in that Championship campaign, a year cut short for the big-money addition after his serious knee injury that kept him out for over a year.
However, the former DR Congo international would return for the 2016/17 season, which would be his final one at the City Ground, scoring 14 times and helping fend off any final-day relegation worries.
He scored two against Ipswich Town on the final day, securing a 3-0 win before departing in a £15m deal to join fellow second-tier outfit Middlesbrough – a then club-record departure.
However, his career has failed to kick on as many anticipated since his transfer to the Riverside, scoring 47 times in 161 appearances, before leaving on a free transfer at the end of his contract in 2021.
Player
Season
Fee
1) Brennan Johnson
2023/24
£47.5m
2) Orel Mangala
2024/25
£30m
3) Moussa Niakhate
2024/25
£27m
4) Odysseas Vlachodimos
2024/25
£20m
5) Britt Assombalonga
2017/18
£15m
He’s since mainly featured in Turkey for various clubs, now plying his trade for second-tier side Amed SK, who joined this summer, scoring twice in his first 11 games for his new club.
As a result, his market value has plummeted to just £625k, a figure lower than current squad member Willy Boly who’s now only valued at £2m despite his run-in as a regular starter in 2023/24, which saw him make 20 Premier League appearances.
Given the finances at the time, it was a tough call to part ways with a proven goalscorer, undoubtedly taking away one of the biggest assets within the first team.
However, given his steady decline in recent years, Forest certainly made the right call in allowing him to leave, with the club in a much better place than Assombalonga in 2024.
Nottingham Forest loan flop is now "world-class" & worth £50m after leaving
Nottingham Forest made a huge mistake in allowing the talent to leave.
1 ByEthan LambNov 21, 2024