Che Adams’ future looks to be up in the air at Southampton, having failed to score a goal since his £15m summer move from Birmingham City.
Sabri Lamouchi’s Nottingham Forest are in desperate need of firepower and have been linked with the former Ilkeston striker.
Adams started the season as Ralph Hasenhuttl’s first choice frontman, but opted to replace him with Danny Ings after his goal drought, a move which has worked wonders for the Saints in their battle against the drop.
Ings has plundered 12 goals in his last 13 games, leading to talk about a possible England call-up, while Adams has been left to watch on.
Adams is without a goal in his 15 outings this term and could be moved out in January as Saints look to bolster their ranks in a bid to secure safety.
The Austrian boss, though, believes Adams’ campaign could have been different had he found the net early on.
"He was a little unlucky in the first games,” said Hasenhuttl.
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“He had a few chances, but was a little bit unlucky, maybe hitting the post twice.
"Maybe if he scored, the story would be a different one. But no, after a lot of games, with Ingsy doing better and better, it was up to me to give Ingsy a chance from the beginning.
"That means that Che was on the bench. Then you have to wait for the next chance to play.
“Now it is difficult because Ingsy has done so well."
Back in October, Adams was left out of the squad for the defeat at Tottenham.
That was a move Hasenhuttl felt benefited the 23-year-old with him coming back refreshed, although he’s still failed to hit the net in the eight games since.
"Che played every game until the last game from the beginning and 90 minutes against Portsmouth and I wanted to give him one time a rest," he said.
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“It shows even if like him you look for scoring which didn’t work.
“I had also a very long conversation with him and I was not unhappy with his performance because he worked very hard for the team.
“Sometimes you have to take the pressure off and he can start again and push the reset button and then give him another chance to maybe come from the bench or show the team that he can really help us.
“I am absolutely convinced that he will do it in the future.”