Brennan Johnson has been linked with a stunning return to Nottingham Forest, with a trusted journalist suggesting that the winger could leave Tottenham Hotspur amid criticism from Jamie O’Hara.
Johnson joined Tottenham from Forest in the summer of 2023. The north London club paid a sizeable transfer fee of £47.5million for the Wales international, as chairman Daniel Levy showed his ambition and backed head coach Ange Postecoglou with a new attacker after Harry Kane left for Bayern Munich in a £100million deal.
The 23-year-old, though, has had a mixed time at Tottenham, with the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium fans not always happy with him.
Johnson scored five goals and gave 10 assists in 38 matches in all competitions for Tottenham last season.
The winger has done better this campaign, finding the back of the net 14 times and making three assists in 38 appearances for Spurs.
Nottingham Forest writer at The Athletic, Paul Taylor, has now suggested that Johnson could potentially return to the City Ground this summer.
If Forest qualify for the Champions League, then the winger would be more than happy to go back to his former club, according to the respected journalist.
Taylor told The Athletic during a Q&A, as relayed by NottinghamForestNews: “I’d guess that he’d be more than happy to come back to Forest to play Champions League football, if they do manage to get themselves over the line for that, of course.
“But there might be a few more complicating factors involved. Not least the fact that Anthony Elanga has been a pretty exciting replacement for him. He has been brilliant down the Forest right.
“One more wide player/forward added to the mix would be very useful, of course, particularly one of Brennan’s quality.
“Would he get into the team right now? That’s a different question, or perhaps the question is where he would fit in. It’s definitely an interesting idea.”
Jamie O’Hara frustrated with Brennan Johnson
Former Tottenham midfielder and talkSPORT pundit O’Hara has often criticised Johnson for not doing enough, and his latest harsh comments for the winger came after the Premier League club’s 3-1 win against AZ at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in the second leg of Europa League last-16 tie on Thursday.
O’Hara said on talkSPORT: “Brennan Johnson, for me, he gets on the end of things, but he frustrates the life out of me. But, Odobert has got a bit more about him.”
The pundit added: “He (Johnson) gets on the end of things, he’s the one that finishes the move off. But, when he gets on the ball, I want to see more, go past players. He’s great with his runs, he wants Maddison or someone to put him in, he’ll get on the back post and that’s a great attribute to have.
“But, if you want to play for Tottenham week in, week out on the wing, you’ve got to produce when you get the ball at your feet. You saw that happen with players Spurs have had as wingers, like Bale and Lennon and Ginola, players like that. You need someone who can do that.”
Latest Tottenham news: Angel Gomes boost, Real Madrid threat
Tottenham have received a boost in their quest to sign Angel Gomes, with Premier League rivals Manchester United deciding to abandon their pursuit of the midfielder.
Man Utd have reportedly decided not to make a move for the England international, while Spurs are in talks with the midfielder’s agents over signing the Lille star on a free transfer this summer.
TEAMtalk contributor Ben Jacobs has revealed that Real Madrid are interested in Tottenham duo Cristian Romero and Pedro Porro.
The defending Spanish and European champions are on the hunt for a new centre-back and have Romero on their radar.
Porro is Los Blancos’s second-choice right-back if they are unable to seal the deal with Liverpool ace Trent Alexander-Arnold.
Meanwhile, former Liverpool striker John Aldridge has tipped second-choice Reds goalkeeper Caoimhin Kelleher to join Tottenham.
Aldridge said: “As much as I would love him to stay at Liverpool for the rest of his career, I think I can probably see him having to go to play regular football because it’s what he deserves. As much as he loves Liverpool, he should be playing week in, week out.
“As a Liverpool fan, I’d love to see him go abroad. I think it would be great for him. I’m looking at the top teams here and there’s some teams like Tottenham that need a better goalkeeper… Manchester United need a better keeper! But he’s not going there!
“He could play for any team in the Premier League but personally you know I’d say it’s one of the top teams in Europe that he deserves. Italy, Spain, Germany or whatever. I think that would be perfect for him, I really do.”