The biggest dark horse of the Premier League this season is undoubtedly Nottingham Forest, which has achieved a record of 12 wins, 4 draws and 4 losses, ranking third only by goal difference.
In addition, Forest is the only team to have beaten Liverpool this season, something that even Real Madrid and Manchester City have failed to do.
Under the 4231 low defensive counter-attack formation crafted by Portuguese head coach Nuno, center forward Chris Wood is the focal point of the attack, having scored 12 Premier League goals.
The 24-year-old attacking midfielder, Gibbs White, is the midfield core, scoring 3 goals and assisting 3 times in the last 6 games, helping Forest win 6 consecutive victories, just 6 points behind the top team Liverpool. In the next round of the Premier League, they will face Liverpool at home, which could be a decisive game for the championship.
White was born on January 27, 2000, from the Wolves youth academy, but he never became a regular player at Wolves.
During the 2021-22 season, White performed outstandingly during his loan spell at Championship side Sheffield United, scoring 12 goals and providing 10 assists in 37 games. In the summer of 2022, newly promoted Nottingham Forest signed White for a fee of 29.5 million euros.
White stands at 1.78 meters tall and weighs 70 kilograms, with neither exceptional absolute speed nor strength; he is a right-footed player. White's technique is simple and practical, with stable dribbling and ball control, as well as an accurate cross from the flank. Although he is an attacking player, White is very aggressive in midfield, mainly playing as an attacking midfielder or central midfielder, sometimes also playing as a winger.
After several seasons of training at Forest, White has made rapid progress, making 37 appearances in the Premier League last season, scoring 5 goals and providing 10 assists.
This season, under Nuno's 4231 formation, White is the attacking midfielder lurking behind center forward Chris Wood, using the space created by Wood to organize attacks or make late runs into the box for shots. White has already scored 4 goals and provided 3 assists in 16 Premier League games this season, becoming the core of the midfield, with a current market value of 40 million euros on Transfermarkt.
His excellent performance at the club earned him his debut for the England national team in September 2024, where he provided an assist in the Nations League match against Greece.
White's outstanding performance made him a hot prospect in the summer transfer window of 2024, with Newcastle United and Tottenham chasing him, and Manchester City also keeping an eye on him. However, Forest did not let White go due to the insistence of head coach Nuno.
Recently, Mail Sport reported that White has come into Liverpool's sights, considering him one of their targets to strengthen the midfield in the winter window.
However, with Forest's excellent current form and in a key period to challenge for next season's Champions League qualification, it is unlikely that they will release players in the winter window. However, by the summer window, with White's contract expiring in June 2027, if the player is not keen on renewing, it could present an opportunity for other teams.
Given White's current form and his English "passport," if he were to transfer, it would likely cost at least 60 million euros. So, which big club will White join in the future?