£150 million in a single transfer window, Nottingham Forest the latest team targeted by football short-termism.

It was meant to be an indication of ambition when Nottingham Forest spent £150 million in a single transfer window during the summer of 2022. Being a Premier League team has its costs, and maintaining a competitive team, much alone one that can contend for championships, takes money. However, putting together a world-class team also requires meticulous planning, and when Forest destroyed that blueprint, they sped up the process, which resulted in a charge of violating sustainability and profit regulations.

The Premier League accusation, which may result in a punishment of points, concerns a three-year period during which Forest signed 31 players in the season after their promotion. As strange as it sounds now, everything had a quiet beginning in June 2022 when the team broke their transfer record to pay roughly £17.5 million to Union Berlin for Taiwo Awoniyi. The striker was a big-name acquisition who scored the goals that, in some ways, kept Forest up, and for a competent No. 9, his price was reasonable by Premier League standards. Without a doubt, his cost has increased since then.

Bringing in players from leagues where value might be found and improving them before selling them on was all part of the plan. Potentially, it might make Forest sustainable and economical. The plan was put in place by the head coach, Steve Cooper, and the then-chief executive, Dane Murphy, along with head of recruiting, George Syrianos. However, there was a desire within the club to make bigger waves in the market.

Later in that summer window, when competing transfer tactics began to materialize and wages began to soar, the heavy spending began. Miltiadis Marinakis, the son of the owner, played a significant role in hiring Jesse Lingard, Cheikhou Kouyaté, Emmanuel Dennis, Remo Freuler, Willy Boly, and Serge Aurier. Although their resumes and pay were good, it was debatable if Cooper’s style would work well with them as the transfer policy grew more dispersed.