“He wants to work” – manager trying to get player into form after Nottingham Forest snub

Feyenoord manager Brian Priske has said he is working hard to strengthen striker Santiago Gimenez following his decision to stay and turn down Nottingham Forest this summer.

   1908.nl covers today’s comments from the Feyenoord boss as he is still asked about Gimenez after the summer transfer drama.

   Nottingham Forest have been pushing hard to convince the Dutch side to sell their prized asset.

   Feyenoord appeared reluctant at first, but showed willingness later in the window, pushing to lure Nottingham Forest to a growing sale value and potential club-record sale.

   However, the whole process was stopped by Gimenez, who resisted the play of the major leaguers and decided to stay where he was.    It was later explained that he believed he could secure a move to a bigger club than Forest in the near future.

   However, his and Feyenoord’s decision to stick together has been questioned in recent weeks as the forward struggled to find his best form at the start of this season, following similar struggles at the end of last year.

   This has led to suggestions that Feyenoord will now be frustrated that they never managed to sell over the border, with criticism aimed at Gimenez, who some believe does not want to be at the Dutch club after all.

   Priske will not comment on this, but admits that he is working hard to get the Mexican back to his best results so that he can put the summer behind him.

   “It has to do with expectations,” he said.

   “They are high, both in terms of results and performances of individual players. You hope that the key players will give their maximum, and Gimenez is that kind of player. But there are a lot of things to achieve that. Football is not that simple.

   “Gimenez shows me every day that he wants to work hard, that he gives his best. We have seen his better games this season than the game against FC Groningen, but my job is to make it more stable.”