Premier League side Nottingham Forest are preparing an offer worth €25m plus add-ons for Italy international Davide Frattesi, reports Sky Sport Italia.
The midfielder’s agent Beppe Riso and Inter Milan director Piero Ausilio met with Forest’s executives earlier this week, and the English club are now ready to make their opening proposal.
Frattesi was not a regular starter for Inter under head coach Cristian Chivu in the 2025-26 campaign, collecting just three assists in 33 appearances across all competitions.
Last season, Frattesi only played 1,133 minutes with Inter, who are understood to be highly open to player trading offers for the 26-year-old midfielder.
According to Sky Sport, the Nerazzurri’s firm asking price is €30m, so Forest’s opening proposal would not be too far from the Serie A champions’ structural demands.
Frattesi initially joined Inter from domestic rivals Sassuolo in the summer of 2023, and his current contract at the Stadio Meazza runs out in June 2028.
The City Ground club had already been heavily linked with a move for the player back in the January transfer window before financial gaps temporarily halted negotiations.
The player’s camp is eager to find a project that offers consistent first-team football, which has prompted intense interest from other clubs in Italy.
Serie A heavyweights Juventus, Napoli, and Roma have also been keeping close tabs on the midfielder’s ongoing situation ahead of the busy summer months.
However, Nottingham Forest are the first side to formally step up with a concrete cash package to test Inter’s resolve in this window.
The East Midlands club are looking to heavily back their management team by introducing dynamic international quality to their existing midfield core.
The final decision will now rest with the Inter Milan hierarchy, who need to determine if the €5m valuation gap can be bridged with clever add-on structures.
With pre-season training rapidly approaching for both clubs, all parties are keen to find a swift resolution to the developing transfer saga.
Should the deal progress, it could trigger a domino effect across the market, allowing Inter to fund their own primary targets before the deadline.
For Frattesi, a move to the Premier League represents an exciting new chapter to showcase his direct running style and eye for goal on a global stage.
The background details of the transfer highlight Nottingham Forest’s relentless ambition under their current ownership group to solidify their top-flight status.
Having narrowly avoided major relegation scares in previous seasons, the technical staff identified the engine room as a critical area needing an upgrade.
Frattesi is viewed internally as the quintessential box-to-box midfielder who possesses the exact physical attributes required to thrive in England.
His tactical flexibility means he can easily operate as a traditional number eight or push further forward as an aggressive mezzala in a midfield trio.
During his highly successful developmental years at Sassuolo, he earned a reputation across European scouting networks for making incredibly late runs into the penalty area.
Those late bursts allowed him to register double-digit goal involvements in consecutive Serie A campaigns before earning his high-profile move to the San Siro.
However, the staggering depth of Inter’s midfield roster meant that breaking into the starting lineup permanently proved to be an immense challenge.
With established international stars occupying the key positions, Frattesi found himself primarily utilized as a high-energy option from the substitutes’ bench.
While he always maintained a professional attitude under Cristian Chivu, a player of his caliber naturally demands consistent starting minutes at this stage of his career.
The player’s desire to safeguard his prominent position within the Italian national team setup has also played a massive role in his decision to look elsewhere.
Beppe Riso has been working tirelessly behind the scenes to explore viable avenues, making it clear to Inter that a transfer would suit all parties involved.
For Inter Milan, selling a fringe asset for close to €30m represents excellent business that helps them balance their books in accordance with financial regulations.
The Italian club originally invested a similar total package to secure his services from Sassuolo, meaning they would completely break even on the player.
Furthermore, the hierarchy at the San Siro is already drawing up contingency plans, with reports suggesting they could target Liverpool’s Curtis Jones as a replacement.
The potential arrival of Jones on a structured loan deal would easily fill the void left by Frattesi without requiring an exorbitant upfront transfer layout.
Meanwhile, Nottingham Forest are highly confident that their lucrative contract offer can successfully convince the player to swap Milan for the East Midlands.
The club has used its extensive network of connections within Italian football to smooth over initial discussions, building on relationships established during previous windows.
Forest have already successfully integrated Italian talent into their squad, which could help Frattesi adjust much faster to the unique cultural demands of English football.
The City Ground faithful are understandably excited about the prospect of landing a full international who is currently entering the absolute prime of his career.
Social media platforms have been flooded with tactical breakdowns of how Frattesi would complement the existing defensive steel in Forest’s current midfield setup.
His addition would undoubtedly give the team a much more potent transition game, turning defensive turnovers into rapid counter-attacks in the blink of an eye.
However, the looming presence of domestic Italian giants like Juventus and Napoli means that Nottingham Forest cannot afford to drag their feet in negotiations.
If either of those powerhouse clubs matches Inter’s €30m valuation, Frattesi might ultimately prefer to remain in his home country where Champions League football is guaranteed.
Juventus, under their new structural project, are eager to add dynamic domestic players to their ranks to appease a fan base demanding a return to Scudetto glory.
Napoli are also undergoing a major squad overhaul and view Frattesi as the ideal midfield engine to drive their aggressive tactical system forward next year.
Despite that heavy competition, Forest’s willingness to present a concrete cash offer immediately gives them a major head start over the chasing pack.
Most Italian clubs are currently restricted by their own financial boundaries, preferring complex loan-with-option structures rather than outright permanent purchases.
Inter Milan’s preference is to secure guaranteed capital upfront, which aligns perfectly with the straightforward bidding strategy currently being deployed by Forest.
If the final bonus clauses can be restructured to guarantee a total payout closer to the €30m mark, an agreement could be finalized surprisingly quickly.
The coming days will reveal whether Nottingham Forest can successfully pull off one of the most intriguing under-the-radar midfield transfers of the summer.
For now, the opening €25m bid rests firmly in the hands of the Inter directors, who must weigh up short-term squad depth against long-term financial gain.
