Nottingham Forest have signed Harry Toffolo and Lewis O’Brien from Huddersfield Town in a combined £10m transfer deal.
Toffolo began his career with Norwich City where he helped them win 2012-13 FA Youth Cup but failed to make a single senior appearance for the Canaries following loan spells at; Swindon, Rotherham, Peterborough, Scunthorpe United and Doncaster Rovers.
Permanent spells at Millwall and Lincoln followed before he moved to Huddersfield in January 2020, during which he scored nine goals in 99 senior appearances across two-and-a-half years.
Huddersfield’s Head of Football Operations, Leigh Bromby thanked Toffolo on behalf of the club for his efforts and “wish him the very best of luck” at Forest, following his “massive contribution” which saw the Terriers make progress but missed out on promotion at last season’s Play-Off Final.
Bromby also confirmed that initial discussions over a new contract had taken place last season with Toffolo ultimately declining the offer, which would of “have made him our highest paid player at the time,” but is happy with how Toffolo remained committed to the team after declining the contract.
Bromby consequentially felt this transfer was “right” for both Huddersfield and Forest due to Toffolo having entered the final year of his contract.
“I’m extremely delighted to be here, to be able to join a football club with this much stature is fantastic and to have the opportunity to play in the Premier League is something I couldn’t turn down.” said Toffolo of his move to Forest.
On what Forest fans can expect from him this season, Toffolo commented: “I’m a player who wears his heart on his sleeve and I’m someone that will fight for the badge and for the team every single minute and now I can’t wait to get started.”
Toffolo also tweeted the following message thanking Huddersfield fans for their support, in which he said:
Thank you everyone associated with @htafc! pic.twitter.com/8vMsxVPWsk
— Harry Toffolo (@Harry_Toffolo) July 20, 2022
O’Brien meanwhile graduated through Huddersfield’s youth academy and made his senior debut in 2019-20 season, with the midfielder having spent the previous season on loan at Bradford City where he scored four goals in 46 appearances.
Bromby paid tribute to O’Brien as he stated that the club is “proud” of his progress and opportunity to play in the Premier League with Forest.
Reflecting on the progress of O’Brien and Toffolo at Huddersfield, Bromby said: “Lewis, like Harry, totally committed to our process of how we develop players and worked tirelessly with our staff to improve every aspect of his game.
“They both deserve all the credit in the world for that, as do our staff.”
O’Brien meanwhile is “delighted” to move to Forest ahead of their first top-flight season this century as he described the move as “a no-brainer for me.”
Last season saw Forest go from relegation candidates to promotion via the play-offs which has earned praise from O’Brien who commented: “You only have to look at Forest’s turnaround last season to see that something special is happening here at the moment,” at the City Ground.