Despite their strong summer activity so far on the transfer scene, Derby County and Middlesbrough are thought to be lining up a deal for Nottingham Forest's Michail Antonio.
The Rams, now under the management of ex-Real Madrid No.2 Paul Clement, have spent big this summer, most notably with the likes of Tom Ince coming in from Hull City in a club record deal of £4.75million and Jason Shackell who returned to Derby for a £3million fee.
Clement has also recruited former Aston Villa striker Andreas Weimann in a £2.5million deal meanwhile Darren Bent, Scott Carson, Alex Pearce and Chris Baird have all arrived on free transfers from Villa, Wigan Athletic, Reading and West Bromwich Albion respectively.
Middlesbrough have also been busy this summer. The return of Stewart Downing in a £7 million agreement being the highlight of their signings amongst Alex Baptiste from Bolton Wanderers, Christian Stuani from Espanyol and former Leicester City striker David Nugent.
Antonio on the radar
However, despite their strong activity, both Derby and Boro have shown a strong interest in attacking midfielder Antonio who has also been the subject of a £6 million bid from West Bromwich Albion, whilst the Rams have also had a £4 million offer rejected.
The 25-year-old has made a positive start to the season for Nottingham Forest, scoring a brace in the Reds' 4-3 defeat to Walsall in the first round of the Capital One Cup before netting against Rotherham United in Forest's first win of the season on Saturday.
Going nowhere
Due to the club's current transfer embargo, it has been a difficult summer for Dougie Freedman's Forest. The former Crystal Palace boss has only been able to secure deals for Matthew Mills and Jamie Ward on free transfers.
But chairman Fawaz Al-Hasawi insists that Antonio is 'not for sale' whilst also claiming that 'the manager must be consulted and a replacement identified before I accept a bid.'
Considering the circumstances that Forest find themselves under, many Reds fans can only help but feel that should Antonio depart the club, then the East Midlands side may find themselves in a lot of trouble.