Joao Carvalho makes exciting Nottingham Forest prediction | OneFootball

Following his expensive arrival at the club in the summer of 2018, Joao Carvalho was expected to do big things for Nottingham Forest.

However it never quite worked out for the Portuguese attacking midfielder at the City Ground after showing flashes of class in his debut campaign, where he scored four goals and notched eight assists.

Carvalho was then in and out of the team in 2019-20 under Sabri Lamouchi and then found himself farmed out on loan to Almeria of Spain for the 2020-21 campaign, where he again failed to impress enough to earn a permanent deal.

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After featuring briefly in the first month of the current season under Chris Hughton, Carvalho never really got much of a chance under Steve Cooper aside from three appearances in December, and after three-and-a-half years at Forest, Carvalho departed permanently for Olympiakos – also owned by Forest chief Evangelos Marinakis.

Carvalho is still keeping a close eye on things at his former club though, and he’s backed them to win promotion to the Premier League this season, praising Cooper in the process despite the fact he was happy to dispense of his services.

“This season, if I can bet for a team to be promoted I would bet on Nottingham Forest for sure because I know the quality is there,” Carvalho told The Sun.

“I know how good the coach is as well because I like the way he works, he works every day to improve the team.

“The results are there and if I could bet for a team it would be them, for sure.”

The Verdict

Carvalho certainly provided some creativity at times for Forest, but a lot more was expected considering it took a hefty transfer fee to bring him to the club in the first place.

He has found a new home though in Greece but he’s still clearly a fan of his former side and what Steve Cooper is doing.

Before their loss to Luton Town on Friday, Forest were in really good form and were primed to potentially challenge Bournemouth for second spot in the league.

That may be harder to do now but even if they fall short of the automatic promotion places, they will be strong contenders to go through the play-offs and back to the Premier League.