One year in England, then not much else
Dilane Bakwa did not blow his chance at Nottingham. Nottingham blew it with him.
A bloated squad. Two coaching changes in one season. A relegation scrap that swallowed everything in its path. The French winger played, reasonably well when he was given space, but never long enough to settle into anything.
Then Oliver Glasner arrived. Bakwa is not part of his plans. The message got through.
According to the Daily Telegraph, a report backed up by Foot Mercato, Lille have struck an agreement with Nottingham Forest over a loan deal.
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Lille faced competition
Hull City. Ipswich. Fiorentina. Three open doors, and the 23-year-old appears to be leaning towards Ligue 1.
Lille have one card the others did not: Champions League football. The north of France schedule is about to get a lot busier, and Davide Ancelotti is short of options on the right wing.
Bakwa fits that brief perfectly. He is the sort who hugs the touchline, stretches defences and breaks a line when a match gets bogged down. Strasbourg reaped the benefit between 2023 and 2025. Enough for a Premier League club to come calling last summer.
Lille’s smart transfer business
Lille banked 100 million euros by selling Ayyoub Bouaddi to Manchester City. Plenty of cash to spend if they wanted to splash out.
They did not.
A loan for a 23-year-old winger looking to kick-start his career costs little and could pay back handsomely. The Dogues are closing their window by hunting value rather than chasing the biggest cheques. The only question now is whether Bakwa can get back to the level he showed at the Meinau.
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