Nottingham Forest midfielder Jonjo Shelvey has heaped praise on head coach Steve Cooper after joining the club from Newcastle United on transfer deadline day. The 31-year-old arrives on a two-and-a-half-year deal from the north east, and could be in contention to make his debut when Leeds United visit the City Ground in Premier League action at the weekend. Shelvey becomes Forest’s second signing of transfer deadline day, following the arrival of Felipe from Atletico Madrid earlier in the day. Paris Saint-Germain goalkeeper Keylor Navas is also expected to arrive. Speaking as his move to Forest was confirmed,
Jonjo Shelvey said: “It’s a pleasure to be here. As soon as I found out Forest were interested, it caught my eye straight away and I just couldn’t wait to get down here. It’s a fantastic football club that has so much history and I’m really looking forward to getting started. My main goal straight away is to fight for my place in the team and stay there. It’s not going to be easy because there’s a lot of competition for places, but it’s a challenge I’m really looking forward to and the competitiveness can only help the team going forward. I spoke to Eddie Howe and he had such good words to say about Steve Cooper. I previously knew of him from my time at Liverpool, so I knew what a fantastic coach he was, but meeting him for the first time has been a breath of fresh air. He’s told me what he expects and the high standards he sets, so I can hope I can come and help the team push to stay in the Premier League. I’ve been in this league a long time, I know what it takes to stay up and what it takes to get a good team to gel, so I’m looking forward to getting started and working with the players that are here.”
