Nottingham Forest have shown an interest in signing non-league teenager Olly Allen.
The Dorking Wanderers winger says the Reds have been in touch after watching him in action, with Coventry City also keen.
Allen has just penned his first contract with the National League South outfit, but has had trials at Brighton & Hove Albion and Wolverhampton Wanderers this year.
And while Wolves opted not to put forward a deal, the 17-year-old says Forest have had an eye on him.
“Wolves spoke to me a couple of days later (after going on trial), just to basically say that they weren’t going to offer me a pro contract or a scholarship at the moment, but there were two clubs, Nottingham Forest and Coventry, watching the game that I was playing in,” he told SurreyLive.
“They were interested and Forest have followed that up and have made contact with my dad and the club.
“Obviously, it’s a shame about Wolves but a Premier League club is a big step up from what I’m playing in at the moment.
“I’m really happy at Dorking though, but it’s nice to know that other clubs are keen on me, like Forest have already shown.”
Any interest from the Reds would likely be with a view to Allen linking up with the youth-teams.
The youngster has come through the academy at Dorking and has been training with the first-team since December.
That led to spending time with the Premier League Seagulls and Wolves.
“It was really good. I was training with a Premier League team and playing against other Premier League teams, which was a good experience,” Allen said.
“I’d say that from training with the (Dorking) first-team, it wasn’t a massive difference, it was probably similar but obviously from where I’ve been playing with the under-18s it was quite a step up.
“Brighton happened just as I started training with the first-team and I was recommended to go down to train with them and go on a trial as well.
"It was quite similar to my week at Wolves, they both have similar setups, being Premier League clubs, and the level of play wasn’t actually too much different either.
“I think those two trials and getting involved with the first-team were the most beneficial things I’ve done in the last year.”
