Nottingham Forest head coach Sean Dyche arrived at the City Ground to replace Ange Postecoglou in October and has enjoyed a fairly strong start to life in the Midlands.
The English tactician has won three of his six matches and kept three clean sheets, most recently masterminding the incredible 3-0 win over Liverpool at Anfield in the Premier League.
Unfortunately, though, the player Dyche knows the most within the Forest squad, Chris Wood, has been unavailable for selection due to a knee injury.
The latest news on Chris Wood's injury
The New Zealand international suffered a knee injury in October that has kept him out of action for over a month, and he is yet to feature under Dyche for the Tricky Trees.
Prior to the Liverpool win, Dyche said: “It is just a settling period (for Wood), it is nothing too serious, it is a grumbling knee. It is serious enough to stop him from loading it; from loading in daily training, but it is settling down.”
This means that it is a case of wait and see for the experienced frontman before he can return to training and Premier League action, after he scored a staggering 20 goals in the top-flight for Forest last term.
The former Burnley man only scored two goals from 2.77 xG in the first eight matches of the current Premier League season, though, per Sofascore, and it will be interesting to see if Dyche can get him back to his best.
Meanwhile, Forest are reportedly eyeing up a January transfer window swoop for Porto centre-forward Samu Aghehowa, who could be the manager’s new version of Wood.
Why Samu could be Dyche's new Wood for Nottingham Forest
The current Tricky Trees striker turns 34 next month and there is no guarantee that he will come back from this knee injury to deliver goals on a consistent basis, which may be why a new striker is on the agenda for January.
Like Wood, who is 6 foot 3, Samu is a physically imposing centre-forward who stands at 6 foot 4 and has the strength and size to compete with Premier League defenders to be the kind of focal point that Dyche wants his number nine to be.
Journalist Zach Lowy once claimed that the Porto marksman can be “one of the best STs in Europe” and his form in Portugal suggests that he is now living up to that praise.
The Spain international scored six goals in nine Europa League matches in the 2024/25 campaign, per Sofascore, whilst his form in the Portuguese top-flight has been phenomenal.
Appearances
30
10
xG
14.07
4.98
Goals
19
6
Minutes per goal
119
105
Assists
3
1
Aerial duel success rate
51%
60%
As you can see in the table above, Samu has provided a consistent and clinical threat in the final third for Porto in the Liga Portugal since the start of last season, whilst also winning the majority of his aerial contests in that time.
These statistics suggest that the 21-year-old centre-forward would be the perfect signing for Dyche as his next version of Chris Wood, because he has the physique, the finishing skills, and the aerial ability to be a complete number nine for the Forest boss.
The Spaniard would also have Wood at the club as an experienced mentor for him to continue his development, as the ex-Burnley ace is 12 years his senior and could be an excellent role model to help with his transition to English football.
Therefore, Forest should push hard to get a deal done for the Porto sensation because he could be an excellent addition to the squad as Wood’s natural successor under Dyche.
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