Nottingham Forest Sign Daniel Muñoz from Crystal Palace
Nottingham Forest have completed the signing of Daniel Muñoz from Crystal Palace in a deal worth up to £22m, handing Oliver Glasner a familiar and trusted weapon on the right flank.
The Colombia international arrives at the City Ground on a three-year contract with an option for a fourth, reuniting with the head coach under whom he became a key figure at Selhurst Park. Forest have moved decisively, adding an experienced, attack-minded wing-back at a time when the market for proven Premier League defenders is tight and expensive.
Palace cash in as Muñoz era ends
For Palace, this is calculated business. They signed Muñoz from Genk for £8.5m in January 2024 and now bank a significant profit while reshaping the squad under new head coach Pierre Sage.
The London club effectively cleared the runway for his departure by bringing in Anan Khalaili from Union Saint-Gilloise, a move that opened the door for Muñoz to leave. It still marks the end of an important chapter: the 30-year-old was a crucial part of Palace’s runs to both the Conference League and FA Cup titles, his relentless energy and aggression down the right becoming a defining feature of their recent success.
No Henderson reunion for Forest
Talk of a Palace exodus to Nottingham has been firmly shut down. After reports last week of Forest making a bid for Palace captain and goalkeeper Dean Henderson, the response from Selhurst Park has been categorical: Henderson will not be allowed to leave before the deadline.
Palace want stability behind their new head coach and have no intention of losing another cornerstone of the dressing room in the final hours of the window. Muñoz goes. Henderson stays. The line has been drawn.
Forest eye attacking reinforcements
Forest’s business, though, is not confined to the back line. With Omari Hutchinson departing for AC Milan, they are in the market for forwards and could turn late in the window to Newcastle’s Jacob Murphy.
Forest are keen on the 29-year-old and have previously shown interest earlier in the window, as have Everton, although Newcastle have not yet been formally approached. The situation is complicated by Newcastle’s own hunt for attacking options, with the club looking at Lille’s Matias Fernandes Pardo and Stuttgart’s Bilal El Khannouss as potential arrivals.
Another moving piece is Arnaud Kalimuendo. Eintracht Frankfurt are in talks to re-sign the striker on loan after his spell there in the second half of last season. The German club want another loan, this time potentially with an option to buy. Kalimuendo’s omission from Forest’s matchday 18 in the 2-2 draw at Liverpool on Saturday underlined how live that possibility is.
One deal that will not be revived is Forest’s pursuit of Harrison Armstrong from Everton. After receiving an approach from the Midlands club, the Everton board reached a unanimous decision not to sell, shutting that door firmly before the deadline.
Palace juggle Ahanor deal and Sarr tension
While Palace have lost Muñoz, they are busy on incoming business of their own. The club are close to an agreement with Atalanta to bring Honest Ahanor to Selhurst Park on loan.
The proposal is unusual but clear: Ahanor would join Palace on a season-long loan from Atalanta, then move permanently to Chelsea next summer. Chelsea have been in talks to sign him outright for around £40m, but cannot loan him directly to Palace because Axel Disasi is already on loan there, forcing a more creative route to get the player into the Premier League this season.
On the outgoing side, tension surrounds Ismaila Sarr. The Senegal international wants to leave before the deadline, and Liverpool made an approach for him in the past week as they assess several wide options, including Yankuba Minteh at Brighton. Palace’s stance, though, is uncompromising: Sarr is not for sale and remains under contract until 2029.
Injury has kept Sarr out of Palace’s first two league games of the season, but his future remains one of the more intriguing subplots as the window ticks towards its close at 11pm on Tuesday.
Forest have their wing-back. Palace have their profit. The question now is who blinks first in the final scramble of this window – and which of these two clubs looks back on this week as the moment their season truly turned.
