Talk to people who watch Ousmane Diomande regularly and they will tell you he is a bigger fan of duels than Wild Bill Hickok — and that he has an equally impressive success rate.In a similar mould to anticipated Nottingham Forest team-mate Nikola Milenkovic, he is a physical, combative and decisive figure; a defender who lives for defending.Last season, he was in the top percentile of players for tackle success rate in Portugal’s Primeira Liga. He has pace, strength and is comfortable on the ball — whether carrying it forward at his feet or passing out from the back. But, most of all, he is a defender.And he is the man new Forest head coach Oliver Glasner hopes can bring some of those qualities to the City Ground, with the 22-year-old set to move for €40million (£34.3m; $46.2m) from Sporting CP of Lisbon, as reported by The Athletic’s David Ornstein.
#NFFC linked with a move for Sporting centre back Ousmane Diomande. Defensive action numbers fairly low but that’s to be expected at a top side.
Spent last season playing in a 2, but has significant experience in a 3 (mostly as the middle or right centre back).
Imagine the cost… pic.twitter.com/X7uBEIJM1v
— WT Analysis (@wt_analysis) July 20, 2026The Ivory Coast international has experience of playing in a back four with Sporting. But he is also very comfortable in a three. Which is one of the reasons Glasner has retained an interest in a player who was previously on his radar when he was Crystal Palace boss last season.The message that Glasner has already delivered more than once to the media since his appointment a month ago — that formation is less important than ethos — has been reflected in a far more important environment: within the Forest dressing room.Glasner and his staff have put together lengthy video presentations to explain the identity he wants his Forest side to have. And it is one that, inescapably, starts with a back three.Diomande may still be young, but he has notched up 149 professional appearances, while collecting 16 senior caps. He has won the league title twice with Sporting and was part of the Ivory Coast squad that won the Africa Cup of Nations in 2023. At Forest, he is seen as a missing piece of the jigsaw.
