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‘Forest Fogo’ went into Brazil again, and they’ve come back with three future stars in their luggage.
That nickname is how Nottingham Forest are now known in Rio de Janeiro, having spent big to sign three players from Botafogo, the reigning champions of South America.
Igor Jesus, Jair Cunha and Cuiabano are all considered exciting prospects, and all are expected starters at the Club World Cup in the USA later this month, before heading to Nottingham to join the Premier League.
The whole deal will cost around £33million, and will further raise Forest’s profile as they look to take over South America, as first revealed by Mail Sport.
Forest already have four Brazilian players in the first-team squad. Centre back Murillo has been a revelation since his move from Corinthians in 2023, and has already attracted admiring glances from Real Madrid. Morato provides cover at the back and goalkeeper Carlos Miguel has not played many minutes.
The other is Danilo, who appears to be on his way out to Lyon, a club, like Botafogo, owned by John Textor, who also (for now) has a stake in Crystal Palace.
Jair Cunha, a 20-year-old centre back, is the highest-rated prospect of the ‘Forest Fogo’ trio
Igor Jesus is a 24-year-old striker who has four caps for Brazil, and scored on debut
The last of the trio, Cuiabano, is a flying wing back with a fearsome strike
And now a new trio. At 20, Jair is the youngest and arguably the most exciting prospect with the greatest scope for development.
Six feet, six inches tall and quick across the ground, he was once tipped to become a professional athlete because of his height and long stride.
By the age of 11, however, football was already proving to be a much more attractive proposition, and he had trials at Santos, the club made famous by Pele and Neymar.
Jair entered the trials as a striker, but the Santos talent spotters weren’t convinced, and thought he was likely to fare much better in defence.
Juary, a former Santos star who now identifies talent for the club’s academy, said: ‘We used to say: “Man, this kid is 11 years old, this tall with this stature. Up front, we have a lot of good players ahead of him. At the back, we don’t have anyone with that potential”.
‘He’s a player who knows how to anticipate, knows how to read the game well. He has a good pass and jumps well for headers. He’ll be a hell of a centre back.’
Jair, from Orlandia in the state of Sao Paulo, accepted the challenge, joined the club, changed positions and became a captain as he moved through the youth ranks and turned professional in 2023.
He was one of the few bright spots in the 2024 season as Santos were relegated to the second division of Brazilian football for the first time, before being promoted back at the first attempt.
Jair, at 6ft 6in, is an imposing threat at the back, having converted from being a striker
Nottingham Forest’s four Brazilians – Murillo, Danilo, Morato and Carlos Miguel
Forest will be delighted if Jair is anywhere near as successful as the last Brazilian centre back they signed, Murillo
Botafogo paid Santos £10.3m for Jair in February this year, and he has already become a regular starter for them. Already called up for the Brazil Under 20 team, he has made some of the mistakes you might expect from a young central defender but continues to improve.
Forest will be delighted if he is anywhere near as successful as the last Brazilian centre back they signed, and he could even end up replacing Murillo if Madrid make good on their interest.
As revealed by Mail Sport in March, owner Evangelos Marinakis has tentative plans to invest directly in Brazilian football, and they have poached two scouting gurus with extensive knowledge of South America, to go alongside former Arsenal technical director Edu, who joins the Marinakis stable this summer.
At 24, Igor Jesus is the most experienced and best known of the trio. He is a forward who was called into the senior Brazil squad by Dorival Junior in September and tipped to be one of the stars of the Club World Cup.
He scored his first goal for the national team on debut against Chile in October, and played in matches against Peru, Venezuela and Uruguay last year.
New Brazil boss Carlo Ancelotti was in the stands last week when defending champions Botafogo beat Universidad de Chile in the Copa Libertadores group stage, with Igor the best player on the pitch and creator of the only goal.
He is very quick, mobile and a good finisher. He can lead the line or play with another forward, and his profile as a player is close to Joao Pedro of Brighton.
‘Everyone can see his qualities,’ said Dorival Junior, Ancelotti’s predecessor, when he called him into the Brazil squad in September. ‘We’ve lost Richarlison, Joao Pedro, Pedro, all players in the same position, which made us broaden our scope of observation, and we arrived at Igor, who has been excelling as one of the standout players for the team leading the competition.’
New Brazil boss Carlo Ancelotti was in the stands last week when holders Botafogo beat Universidad de Chile in the Copa Libertadores, with Igor the best player on the pitch
Igor Jesus joined Botafogo on a free transfer in July 2024 and was a key figure as they won the Brazilian league title for the first time in 29 years
He is known for his ‘Kamehameha’ celebration, from Japanese anime cartoon Dragon Ball Z
Igor’s career path is out of the ordinary. He came through the ranks at Coritiba in the state of Parana before leaving Brazil for Shabab Al Ahli in Dubai in 2020. In four years in the United Arab Emirates, he scored 46 goals and registered 16 assists.
He joined Botafogo on a free transfer in July 2024 and became a key figure as the club reached new heights, winning the Brazilian title for the first time in 29 years and the Copa Libertadores for the first time ever.
He has scored 15 goals in a year since arriving, seven of them in 2025 and is known for his ‘Kamehameha’ celebration, from Japanese anime cartoon Dragon Ball Z, where he imitates a fictional technique by the main character of the animated media, Son Goku.
The fans adore him at Botafogo and, initially, Igor was the main attraction for Forest, who made the first approach at the start of this year. Arsenal and Fulham were also reported to have shown interest but could not strike a deal, and so Forest paid around £16m for him. He will face a battle with the likes of Chris Wood and Taiwo Awoniyi for game time at the City Ground.
Luis Eduardo Soares da Silva, or Cuiabano to you and me, is a 22-year-old left back whose nickname comes from his place of birth, Cuiaba.
He can also play left wing and has been used there at times by Botafogo, who have Alex Telles, formerly with Manchester United, as their primary left back.
Cuiabano started out as a forward before one of his youth team coaches at Gremio made the switch. He has become renowned for his attacking threat and physical power.
Botafogo boss Renato Paiva explained his qualities recently: ‘He’s a very incisive player, a very powerful player, one who, in a short space, puts the ball ahead and, with his power, takes off. And because he is a player who can finish.
‘So, as I want my full backs to get into finishing zones, as well as the wingers, I found in Cuiabano a player who’s more about finishing plays, or providing assists with the final pass, or in one-on-one situations.’
Cuiabano started out as a forward before one of his youth team coaches at Gremio made the switch
He has become renowned for his attacking threat and physical power
Cuiabano suffered from muscle problems earlier in his career and benefited from changing his routine at Botafogo, introducing regular pilates sessions
Cuiabano suffered from muscle problems earlier in his career and benefited from changing his routine at Botafogo, introducing regular pilates sessions. Together with Igor Jesus, he was part of last year’s success for Botafogo. They hail from the same city but did not know each other until they joined forces at Botafogo. Now, they are close friends and their families socialise together.
The club’s continental success secured them a place in the Club World Cup, where they will be one of four Brazilian teams alongside Palmeiras, Flamengo and Fluminense, and face daunting group fixtures against Champions League winners Paris Saint-Germain, Atletico Madrid and MLS side Seattle Sounders.
They are all competing for the mouth-watering £97m winner’s cheque, but as for ‘Forest Fogo’, they hope they have already hit the jackpot with their new trio of Samba stars.
