Nottingham Forest’s new signing Rodrigo Ribeiro joins the club on loan for the rest of the season after having his release clause set a staggering £69million by Sporting Lisbon

Nottingham Forest’s Deadline Day signing will cost the club £69million if they want to acquire him on a permanent deal.

The Premier League club announced the loan signing of 18-year-old Rodrigo Ribeiro from Sporting Lisbon on Thursday (February 1). The Portuguese teenager has played six times for Lisbon’s senior team and made his Champions League debut for the club in 2022 when he came on against Manchester City.

It’s been a busy Deadline Day for the Nuno Espirito Santo’s side who sold Serge Aurier to Galatasaray as well as bringing in Borussia Dortmund starlet Giovanni Reyna on loan for the rest of the season.

Should the Reds decide to sign Ribeiro on a permanent deal in the summer, they’ll have to fork out a whopping £69million for his services after his parent club set his release clause to that amount when extending his contract until 2028.

Forest announced the signing of the 18-year-old on X (formerly known as Twitter) where they wrote: “Nottingham Forest is delighted to announce the signing of Rodrigo Ribeiro from Sporting Lisbon.

“The 18-year-old striker has joined the club on loan for the remainder of the season, in a deal which could become permanent beyond that. An exciting young forward, Ribeiro came through the ranks at the Lisbon club, making his professional debut for Sporting in the UEFA Champions League against Manchester City in March 2022.

“A Portugal U20 international, Ribeiro scored six goals in nine matches as Sporting reached the semi-finals of the UEFA Youth League last season, and has featured ten times for the club’s academy side in the Portuguese third tier this term.

“Ribeiro will wear the number 37 shirt during his time on Trentside.”

Forest’s busy transfer dealings come in the wake of their charge from the Premier League for breaking financial rules. The club – alongside Everton – were hit with the news earlier this month that could see the club suffer a points deduction after submitting their accounts for 2022/23 on December 31.