Nottingham Forest U18 full-back Matthew Bondswell, 16, has fended off contracts from big English clubs as he angles for a move towards the Bundesliga.
The left-sided defensive player, who is occasionally used as a winger due to his sheer speed, has played for Nottingham Forest across all age levels down from U8 to even making a few sporadic appearances for the U23 side. He has also been a key player in England’s U16 success, often linking up with fellow Nottingham Forest teammate Alex Mighten down the left.
But now bigger things for Bondswell may be on the horizon as offers from clubs such as Manchester United trouble his status at his hometown club. But it isn’t the Red Devils that Bondswell has his eye on. German top-flight club RB Leipzig have reportedly made an offer for the up and coming fullback, and Bondswell is keen on the switch.
RB Leipzig are known for their development and integration of youth talent into the first team, producing international stars such as Timo Werner and Yussuf Poulsen. This could be a key reason Forest’s talented defender could be vying for a move to the German side, who finished 6th last season in Germany’s top flight.
Leipzig have already nabbed one Nottingham star turn flop Oliver Burke, who has returned to England through newly relegated West Brom, so could Bondswell’s German dream not be as sweet as he thinks.
Implementing English talent into the German game has become a more regular occurrence over the previous few years, with Eric Dier starting out at Portuguese side Sporting Lisbon, and Jadon Sancho ditching Manchester City for Borussia Dortmund.
We could begin to see this become a more popular choice with the next generation of England hopefuls as more game time and a different philosophy may begin to be selected over loans to lower leagues. It’s down to Forest to try their best to keep one of their up-and-comers from following the likes of Sancho.
With the appointment of Aitor Karanka and Forest’s successful introduction of youth players into the first team over the past couple of seasons, Ben Brereton, in particular, getting significant game time, there’s a chance Bondswell might just stay yet, but whether he’s in red next season is still up in the air.
It’s becoming a bigger priority for Forest to keep their best talent as they try to build for the future and make a Championship promotion push. All is surely to be revealed over the next few days as Bondswell weighs up his options.
