Nottingham Forest manager Steve Cooper has remained coy over the Reds’ potential interest in Swansea City midfielder Jay Fulton ahead of the January transfer window. 

Fulton was a major part of Cooper’s squad during his time in charge of Swansea in the previous two seasons. The midfielder managed to make 43 appearances in the Championship last term and he scored three goals in that time to help the Swans make it all the way to the play-off final. 

However, following Russell  Martin’s arrival at Swansea in the summer to replace Cooper, Fulton has seen his game time significantly reduced this season. The 27-year-old has managed to make just four appearances in the Championship to date, and it is expected by Wales Online that he will look to move away from the Swans during the winter transfer window. 

It has been reported that Nottingham Forest could target a move for Fulton during the January transfer window as Cooper gets his first chance to recruit the type of players he wants at the City Ground. Therefore, it will be interesting to see how his situation develops over the next few weeks before the transfer window opens. 

Speaking Wales Online following Forest’s win at Swansea on Saturday, Cooper refused to be drawn on the speculation linking Fulton with a potential move to the City Ground in January. 

He said: "We've got a lot of midfield players here. I'm fond of all the players here. I don't want to talk too much about someone else's player.”

When asked about Fulton’s lack of game time with Swansea since his departure Cooper added: “I haven't really got an opinion on that, publicly."

The verdict 

You would expect Cooper to play his cards close to his chest at this stage. He will not want to upset his former employers by speaking openly about the situation of one of their players so close to the transfer window and therefore he is doing the right thing by keeping his council to the media. 

It is clear though that Forest could be set to make a move for Fulton in January and it would be a move that the midfielder would surely relish considering the lack of game time he is getting at the moment. The 27-year-old’s relationship with Cooper is already established and as a result, a move to the City Ground could be the best one available to him to get his career back on track.

Forest might have a lot of midfield options as Cooper says here, but Fulton could bring some different qualities to the table for them. He played a vital role for Swansea in their midfield last term and helped them to tick, so it is a signing that would make perfect sense for the Reds. 

It will likely be a surprise to Cooper that Fulton has not been playing regularly for the Swans this term, but that is not something that he can openly admit to in public. So, he seems to have got things spot on in terms of the way he addressed the questions.