The second coming of Forest keeper Sels

The threat of Profit and Sustainability Rules (PSR) threatened the transfer window for 2024, which caused a decline in spending and excitement.

Premier League clubs signed only 17 permanent deals, with only 17.

Yet Selz’s move still did not make BBC Sport’s round-up of the ‘ most interesting ‘ transfers of an underwhelming window.

He merely appeared to be another player joining a group that appeared to be going through a pervasive state of chaos.

His only previous experience in England was a nine-year stint at Newcastle United, but Forest spent £5 million to make Belgium’s goalkeeper their third No. 1 of the season.

Sels made the decision to parachute into Forest’s relegation battle from Strasbourg, where Sels had lived for the majority of her life.

His new team finished third in the league, three points clear of safety after making his debut in a 1-1 draw at Bournemouth on February 4.

Forest was also concerned about the possibility of receiving points for PSR, and they were in fact given a four point penalty one month after he joined.

Although the scenario was not ideal, a year later, and the gamble has already proven to be successful.

Sels, who is currently in third place with Sels and Robert Sels, will lead the charge for the Golden Glove with nine clean sheets when Forest return to Vitality Stadium on Saturday.

He has had a significant impact on what has been an incredible turnaround because he is a member of the division’s third-best defense.

He tells BBC Sport, “I was aware that they were looking for a goalkeeper when I signed and that the team was in the league.”

“When you take a goalkeeper in January, most of the time it’s when the team is in difficulties.

” To play in the Premier League, that’s why I wanted to come back – to live the dream a little bit – and I’m really happy with this season.

“I knew the situation when I signed, even when I arrived last season,” he said. You can’t see too far, but you can still determine whether or not it was a good move.

Nobody expected it to be as we are right now, but I saw the quality in the squad when I signed.

Sels’ impact since joining has not changed much since his 2016 arrival to St James’ Park, where he previously won titles in Belgium and Belgium with Gent.

He made just 14 appearances for the Magpies, nine in the Championship, and when Rafael Benitez’s side returned to the Premier League in 2017 he joined Anderlecht on loan.

It wasn’t so simple when I moved to Newcastle. I don’t want to say I was a child, but I was still very young, he says because it was my first time traveling abroad when I was 22 years old.

Sels’ wife and two young children have settled in England, and he’s happy off the field.

You need to turn over your entire life, he says, and my transfer took place on the deadline day.

My eldest child was in the nursery and was beginning to speak some French while we were in France for five and a half years. Now my eldest’s English is better than mine!

At some point, a family’s feelings of unsatisfaction will turn into anger because they want to move back to Belgium or another country.

It’s crucial that the family feels well so you can play well on the pitch.

Sels, who won the French League Cup in five-and-a-half seasons with Strasbourg, has certainly been doing that.

With the assistance of reputable centre-backs Murillo and Nikola Milenkovic, Forest has conceded just 22 goals in 22 games, one more than Liverpool and Arsenal combined.

Sels’ save percentage is 74.4 percent, which is the best among goalkeepers who have played in excess of seven Premier League games this season.

His excellence has been a key part of the turnaround by a Forest side that only survived, officially, on the final day of the last campaign.

When they were outstanding, including making incredible saves to deny Diogo Jota and Mohamed Salah, they only conceded one point in their last eight games when they were held to a 1-1 draw against leaders Liverpool.

Manager Nuno Espirito Santo has so far refrained from posing any concerns about potential title challenges or Champions League qualification.

Sels acknowledges that Forest’s perspective has changed because they haven’t changed.

” We cannot say any anymore it’s about staying in the league, “he concedes.

We make every effort to aim as high as possible, but you must keep top clubs like Newcastle and Manchester City behind you if you want to be there.

“It’s still too early]to talk about the Champions League]. We cannot win all the games, we are going to concede goals, but it’s how we cope with that.