Nottingham Forest will step up their preparations for the 2021/22 Championship campaign when they play Port Vale in a pre-season friendly on July 17th.
This particular clash will give Reds manager Chris Hughton the opportunity to cast his eye over some of the club's younger players who will be determined to force their way into his plans.
One of the individuals who could potentially be feature against the Valiants is winger Brennan Johnson.
The Wales international spent the entirety of the previous campaign on loan at Lincoln City before returning to the City Ground last month.
A stand-out performer for the Imps in League One, Johnson managed to set the division alight with his stunning displays as helped the club reach the play-off final.
As well as providing 14 assists in all competitions, the winger also managed to find the back of the net on 13 occasions in 48 appearances.
In Johnson's absence, Forest failed to deliver the goods on a consistent basis in-front of goal as they were forced to settle for a 17th place finish in the Championship.
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Having recently parted ways with winger Sammy Ameobi, it wouldn't be at all surprising if the Reds decide to hand Johnson the opportunity to prove himself at his level next season.
When you consider just how impressive the 20-year-old was for Lincoln, it is hardly a shock that he is attracting a great deal of interest this summer.
A report from The Athletic last month revealed that Leeds United, Leicester City, Burnley and Barnsley were all interested in signing Johnson.
In an update concerning the winger's future, it has now been suggested that the Tykes are looking to step up their transfer pursuit.
According to a fresh report by The Athletic, Barnsley are willing to pay £2m for Johnson as they look to secure his services this summer.
GIVEMESPORT's Joshua Cole says...
When you consider that Forest reportedly value the winger at £10m, it is extremely unlikely that Barnsley will succeed in this particular pursuit.
For Johnson's sake, he will be hoping that his stunning performances for Lincoln last season will allow him to feature regularly for Forest in the Championship later this year.
As well as reaching double figures for goals and assists, the winger ranked in the top-five at Sincil Bank for shots per game (2.3) and successful dribbles per match (1.4), as per WhoScored.
Whereas Forest could receive a sizeable amount of money for Johnson this summer, selling him at this stage of his career may turn out to be an error as he could potentially have a profound impact on their fortunes next season.
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