Nottingham Forest owe millions to players and agents, it has been claimed.
According to Mail Sport, those that left the club this summer were due to be paid their bonuses for last season, which include Premier League survival payments.
However, those alleged payments, which were due in July, have failed to materialise.
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Moreover, the publication claimed that several agents, also owed millions, are now considering legal action. This could potentially see winding up petitions issued against the club, the Mail has reported.
They are reportedly waiting for commission payments on transfers and are ready to escalate matters, should the debts not be settled soon.
As per the report, should Forest continue to delay, it could have ramifications on their season. Last term, the club were very busy in the transfer market, bringing in 21 players to the City Ground in the summer window alone.
By the end of the season, that figure reached 30, naturally leaving them with a hefty bill to pay agents.
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This summer, Forest have seen several players depart, with six leaving on free transfers. Meanwhile, they have signed three players - Manchester United’s Anthony Elanga, Newcastle United’s Chris Wood, and Torino right-back Ola Aina.
Forest declined to comment to the Mail Online’s report. SPORTbible have also contacted Forest for comment on the claims.
It is said that players who remain at the club are due to be paid their bonuses at the end of August, while those that have left will also reportedly receive their fees at the same time.
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After a difficult start, Steve Coopers’ side finished 16th last season, four points clear of the relegation zone.
The club may be set for another topsy-turvy campaign this time out, having suffered a disappointing 5-0 defeat to French side Stade Rennais in a behind-closed-doors friendly at St George’s Park.
Nevertheless, Cooper is confident of improving on last season’s campaign.
Cooper said, via Nottinghamshire Live: "We have to have the ambition to be better and improve, and seeing what we went through last year and how tough it was, we have to start with retention, no doubt about that and we shouldn't be ashamed to say that.
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"But we should also have the ambition to be more than that, but to do that we have to strengthen the team and strengthen the squad so I can't sit here and give you too many quotes on where we could and should be.
"The window is still open for a while and until we know what the team and squad look like it is difficult to say what we could do. But we know we want to be better than last season while respecting how hard the league is, the first port of call is retaining our status."
Topics: Football, Nottingham Forest, Premier League