Pereira could replace Igor Jesus for the forgotten Nottingham Forest side

Nottingham Forest are currently fighting to avoid relegation from the Championship under new manager Vitor Pereira this season.

The Portuguese manager is the third manager to manage the City Ground dugout in the 2025/26 campaign, following Sean Dyche, Ange Postecoglou, and Nuno Espirito Santo.

Pereira masterminded a 3-0 win over Tottenham Hotspur before the international break to move the club three points clear of West Ham United in the last relegation zone.

While the main focus will be on avoiding relegation from the Premier League in the final seven games of the season, there will also be one eye on what they want to do in the summer.

If they are to avoid relegation, one of the players they need to move away from as regular starters for the 2026/27 campaign is centre-forward Igor Jesus.

Why Nottingham Forest need to move on from Igor Jesus

Due to Chris Wood’s lingering injury problems, the Brazilian number 9 has been a standout for the Tricky Trees in the Premier League, starting 22 of 30 games in this division.

The 25-year-old, in his first season with the club, did not deliver enough quality in the final third to warrant trusting him as the first-choice striker next year.

In his 30 games in the top flight, Jesus scored three goals at 4.66 xG for Nottingham Forest, reaching one goal every ten games and making his xG almost two goals.

The Brazilian flop didn’t perform well or downplay the chances he had or provide enough of a consistent threat to opposing defenders to create a high xG.

That’s why Pereira should look to replace Jesus as a regular starter next season, and he may not need to sign a new one to do so.

The forgotten Nottingham Forest star who could replace Jesus

Tricky Trees have a forgotten star currently on loan and could return to the City Ground this summer as if he had just signed for the manager.

Last summer, Forest tried to sign Arnaud Kalimuendo from Stade Rennes for £26m to strengthen their options at the back end of the pitch, but he was rarely given the chance to impress under Postecoglou or Dyche.

The French striker played just 106 minutes in nine Premier League games, while also scoring twice in four Europa League games, before being loaned out to Eintracht Frankfurt by Dyche in January.

Since joining Frankfurt on loan, Kalimuendo has scored five goals from 3.07 xG in 13 games in the Bundesliga, surpassing Jesus’ league record in a three-month period.

The French star has delivered more goals and ‘big chances’ created together (eight) than Jesus (seven) in less than half of the top-flight games, which speaks to the difference in quality between the two players.

Kalimuendo is not just in the purple phase, having scored ten Ligue 1 goals in the 2023/24 campaign and 17 league goals in the 2024/25 season for Rennes before moving to Forest.

However, the previous management at Forest chose not to give him the chance to prove his quality in the Premier League, which at the moment looks like a big mistake.

Fortunately, for Pereira and Forest, it has been reported that Frankfurt are unlikely to exercise their option to sign the striker permanently for £23m due to their financial problems.

This means Kalimuendo may get a second chance to succeed at the City Ground under a manager he has yet to work with, meaning he may be lonely in the summer.

The 24-year-old star, described as “really dangerous” by U23 scout Antonio Mango, could be an in-house solution to their Igor Jesus problem at the end of the pitch, as he could return to the starting line-up next season.

Given his record in Germany and France, Kalimuendo could be a formidable player for this team if Pereira gives him enough chance, although he may forget some fans due to his lack of minutes before leaving on loan.

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