Nottingham Forest figure weighs in on Blackburn’s Ben Brereton Diaz

Nottingham Forest’s director of professional development Gary Brazil has claimed he will always be proud of Blackburn Rovers striker Ben Brereton Diaz as the Reds academy gave him “the environment to grow and he grabbed it with both hands”. 

A product of Forest’s youth system, Brereton Diaz was sold to Blackburn for a sizeable fee in 2018 but after a few quiet years at Ewood Park has exploded into life in 2021/22 with 20 goals in 29 games as Tony Mowbray’s side have climbed to second in the Championship.

The 22-year-old was called up by the Chilean national team over the summer and has since become a fan favourite in the South American country – adding his fourth international goal against Argentina last night with a lovely weighted header.

That goal has caught the attention of Brazil, with the Forest academy chief taking to Twitter to wax lyrical about Brereton Diaz’s emergence this term.

Will always continue to be proud of @benbreo and the fantastic career he is making for himself. Our @NFFCAcademy gave Ben the environment to grow and he grabbed it with both hands. Always in our hearts ❤️ https://t.co/fuRNhkUcqg

— Gary Brazil (@GazBraz) January 28, 2022

This season the striker has scored more than double the number he scored in 57 appearances for Forest and could inflict some pain on his former club when the two sides meet at Ewood Park early next month.

The Verdict

Brereton Diaz is proving to be a Forest academy success story, even if he’s not doing it at the City Ground.

The East Midlands club generated a fair bit of cash by selling him to Rovers in 2018 but in his first few years at Ewood Park it appeared as though he might not achieve his potential.

Since his Chile call-up, however, the 22-year-old has looked a