Neco Williams has emerged as one of the names in Manchester United’s full-back thinking this summer, with the Nottingham Forest defender linked amid Newcastle United’s competing interest and Forest working to protect their prized asset. Here is everything currently known about the Wales international, what he would bring to Michael Carrick’s squad, and where things stand.
Williams, 25, has become one of the Premier League’s most durable full-backs since leaving Liverpool in 2022, and he was voted Nottingham Forest’s Player of the Season for 2025/26. That form is exactly why his name keeps coming up as United weigh up their options at both full-back positions.
Who is Neco Williams?
Born in Cefn Mawr, Wales, Williams came through Liverpool’s academy and made his first-team debut as a teenager in 2019, going on to make 33 appearances for the Reds and win a Premier League winner’s medal during the 2019/20 title-winning campaign. He spent the second half of the 2021/22 season on loan at Fulham in the Championship before Nottingham Forest paid a reported £17m to sign him permanently in July 2022.
Since then he has been an ever-present for Forest, extending his contract to 2029 last summer and establishing himself as a senior figure in the dressing room through several managerial changes at the City Ground. Internationally, Williams has won more than 50 caps for Wales, scoring four international goals, and featured at Euro 2020 and the 2022 World Cup — the first tournament Wales had reached since 1958. He made his senior Wales debut in September 2020 and has been first-choice at right-back or left-back for his country ever since, giving him a level of tournament and pressure experience that few full-backs of his age can match.
Why are Manchester United interested in Neco Williams?
United’s left-back priority under Michael Carrick has been a running theme this summer, and Williams’ versatility across both full-back positions makes him a fit for more than one problem area. Reports in recent days have suggested a move to Old Trafford “would particularly appeal” to Williams given his boyhood links to Liverpool’s great rivals, though Forest are said to be readying an improved contract offer to ward off suitors, United and Newcastle United among them. No fee has been reported, and Forest’s willingness to sell a Player of the Season winner with three years still on his deal remains the central question.
What is Neco Williams’ playing style?
Williams is right-footed but has made his name primarily at left-back, having switched sides for Forest during the 2024/25 season while remaining equally capable on the right. He is best known for his pace and engine, covering ground box-to-box, defending with intensity and getting forward to provide width and end product; he directly contributed 2 goals and 3 assists in the Premier League last season, in a campaign that saw him average 2.65 tackles, 1.25 interceptions and 2.62 clearances per 90 minutes — figures that point to a full-back doing his defensive job as well as offering an attacking outlet, rather than sacrificing one for the other.
That two-way profile is what separates Williams from a purely defensive full-back or a purely attacking wing-back. Forest have often used him as an outlet under pressure, trusting him to carry the ball out from deep and combine with midfield rather than simply clearing his lines, and it’s a skill set that has translated from a Liverpool academy schooled in possession-based football.
Where would Neco Williams fit under Carrick?
United’s picture at full-back is unsettled on both flanks. On the right, Noussair Mazraoui has struggled for consistent fitness, while on the left Patrick Dorgu is viewed more as an attacking option than a defensive-minded full-back, and Diogo Dalot‘s long-term future remains an open question. Williams’ ability to play both sides to a Premier League standard, allied to his pace and directness, would give Carrick a genuine like-for-like squad option rather than a specialist for one flank only — the kind of fit that explains why his name keeps recurring in United’s planning.
It is also worth stressing what Williams would not immediately solve. He is not the physically dominant, aerially imposing profile some at Old Trafford have identified as a priority following Casemiro’s departure reshaped the balance of the squad, and he would arrive as competition and rotation cover rather than a guaranteed nailed-on starter given the strength of United’s existing options. His value is in the floor he offers: a proven, versatile Premier League full-back who has barely missed a game in four years, lowering the injury and form risk that has affected Mazraoui and Dorgu at different points of the past year.
What has Neco Williams achieved so far?
Beyond his Premier League title medal at Liverpool, Williams was named Nottingham Forest’s Player of the Season for 2025/26 — voted for by the club’s own supporters and confirmed by Forest in May 2026 — a recognition of his consistency across a near ever-present campaign in which he started 36 of Forest’s 38 Premier League matches. At international level, he was part of the Wales squad that ended a 64-year wait for a World Cup finals appearance in 2022, having previously started at Euro 2020, and remains a regular fixture for his country heading into this summer’s international window.
| Season | Club | Competition | Appearances | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019–2022 | Liverpool | All competitions | 33 | 0 |
| 2021/22 (loan) | Fulham | Championship | 15 | 2 |
| 2022/23 | Nottingham Forest | All competitions | 36 | 1 |
| 2023/24 | Nottingham Forest | All competitions | 32 | 0 |
| 2024/25 | Nottingham Forest | All competitions | 39 | 1 |
| 2025/26 | Nottingham Forest | All competitions | 37 | 2 |
Figures as of the end of the 2025/26 season.
What is Neco Williams’ contract situation at Nottingham Forest?
Williams signed a new long-term deal with Forest on 1 July 2025 that runs to 2029, having already been at the City Ground for three years by that point. That contract length is precisely why any move this summer would likely require Forest to be persuaded rather than forced into a sale — there is no relegation-style urgency or expiring deal pushing them towards business, and the club have moved to open talks over improved terms as a retention tool rather than a prelude to sale.
What happens next?
As things stand, no formal approach from Manchester United has been reported, and Forest’s stated preference is to keep their Player of the Season for the club’s first season under their current manager. United’s interest is real, according to multiple reports, but with Newcastle also credited with interest and Forest working on a new contract, Williams’ situation is one to watch through the rest of the transfer window rather than one likely to move quickly. This page will be updated as the picture develops.
Neco Williams to Man Utd: Frequently Asked Questions
Has Manchester United made an offer for Neco Williams?
No. As of 14th July 2026, no formal bid has been reported by any outlet; reports describe interest and contact rather than an agreed fee.
What position does Neco Williams play?
He is a full-back capable of playing on either flank, primarily used at left-back for Nottingham Forest despite being right-footed.
How much is Neco Williams worth?
No transfer valuation has been reported for Williams specifically. Forest paid £17m to sign him from Liverpool in 2022, and he has since signed a new contract to 2029.
When does Neco Williams’ Nottingham Forest contract expire?
2029, following the extension he signed on 1 July 2025.
