Nottingham Forest set to sign Ousmane Diomande from Sporting CP for €40M

Nottingham Forest is closing in on a deal to bring Ousmane Diomande from Sporting CP to the City Ground, with the two clubs negotiating a fee in the region of €40 million. The 22-year-old Ivory Coast international has been one of the most coveted young defenders in European football, and Forest appears to have beaten out competition to land him at exactly half his contractual release clause.

The deal so far

Negotiations between Forest and Sporting CP reached an advanced stage in July 2026, with personal terms reportedly agreed between the player and the English club. The proposed fee of around €40 million sits well below Diomande’s €80 million release clause, which remained intact after he signed a contract extension in January 2026 running through June 2030.

Reports from early August indicated that talks had hit turbulence, primarily over payment structure rather than the headline fee itself. Sporting reportedly pushed for the full €40 million upfront, plus add-ons that could push the total package to around €45 million, along with a sell-on clause.

Who is Ousmane Diomande?

Born on December 4, 2003, Diomande joined Sporting CP in January 2023 for a base fee of €7.5 million, a figure that could rise to €12.5 million with performance-related add-ons. If Forest complete this deal at anything close to €40 million, Sporting will have turned a tidy profit on a player they developed over roughly three and a half years.

Glasner’s interest predates his arrival at the City Ground. The Austrian manager identified Diomande as a target during his stint managing Crystal Palace, but the move never materialized during that tenure.

What this means for Forest’s project

The fee itself, if it lands in the €40-45 million range, would rank among Forest’s largest transfer outlays.

For Sporting, selling at half the release clause is a calculated decision. A sell-on clause, if included in the final agreement, would allow Sporting to benefit from any future move, essentially maintaining a financial interest in a player they helped shape.

Disclosure: This article was edited by Editorial Team. For more information on how we create and review content, see our Editorial Policy.