Nottingham Forest's Bid for Gjivairo Read Rejected by Feyenoord
Nottingham Forest have moved first for one of Europe’s most talked-about young fullbacks – and been sent straight back to the drawing board.
Forest have had a €17.5m (£14.9m) offer for Feyenoord right-back Gjivairo Read rejected, with the Eredivisie club holding firm as interest builds around the 20-year-old.
Transfer specialist Fabrizio Romano reported that the Midlands club tabled the opening bid, only to see it turned down, though Forest are expected to return with an improved proposal as they push to strengthen their back line.
Feyenoord’s stance is clear
Feyenoord know what they have. Read has already clocked up 54 senior appearances for the Dutch giants at just 20, his emergence marked by pace, aggression and a modern fullback’s comfort on the ball.
Local reports in the Netherlands suggest there is a clear threshold. Voetbal International journalist Martijn Krabbendam, via Sport Witness, indicated that an offer in the region of €25m (£21.3m) would bring Feyenoord to the negotiating table and open the door to serious talks with any suitor.
At that price, in today’s market, Read starts to look less like a gamble and more like a calculated investment.
Liverpool watching – but not acting
That is where the tension lies. Read has been repeatedly linked with Liverpool, who are wrestling with their own issues at right-back and have monitored the Dutchman’s progress.
On paper, he fits a glaring need. Liverpool face a season in which the durability of their current options, Conor Bradley and Jeremie Frimpong, will be under the microscope. Both offer quality, both bring energy, yet both carry fitness concerns that make the idea of relying on them alone a risky strategy for a club with title ambitions.
The logic is obvious: a 20-year-old with top-flight minutes, attacking thrust and room to grow, available at a fee that falls well short of the eye-watering sums often attached to elite young defenders.
Yet Liverpool have not moved.
Iraola’s calculation
The explanation may sit with Andoni Iraola. The new head coach is understood to want a close look at Bradley and Frimpong in pre-season, which begins around July 13, before making a definitive call on whether to push for another right-back.
He may decide the position is already covered by that Northern Irish–Dutch pairing. He may feel the squad’s limited resources are better aimed elsewhere.
There is also the question of risk. Read’s injury record in 2025/26 was not spotless, with a hamstring issue interrupting his campaign. For a 19-year-old still growing into his frame, that is hardly unusual, yet it remains a data point for any recruitment department weighing up a deal.
Even so, the broader picture is hard to ignore. Brentford’s Michael Kayode, once seen as a potential solution, has committed his future with a long-term contract. Other elite options in that role will cost significantly more than the €25m Feyenoord are thought to want.
Forest push while giants circle
All of this creates a narrow window. Forest have sensed it and acted, testing Feyenoord’s resolve with that initial bid and signalling their willingness to compete for a player who has also been linked with Manchester City and Bayern Munich.
For a club like Forest, landing Read would be a statement: a young, high-ceiling defender prised from one of Europe’s most productive talent factories, ahead of richer and more glamorous rivals.
For Liverpool, it is a different kind of decision. They must judge whether to trust the internal options and hold their nerve, or step into a market where the price is relatively modest, the upside considerable and the competition growing.
Everyone around Read seems convinced of his potential. The question now is which club is prepared to pay Feyenoord’s price to find out just how high that ceiling goes.
