Boss Paul Jewell confirmed on Sunday evening that an offer had been accepted for Earnshaw and that was why he was left out of the squad to face Reading.

And Jewell today (Tuesday) revealed that Forest, newly promoted back to the Championship, were keen on landing Derby's record buy.

He said: "We have agreed a fee with Nottingham Forest of £2.5m and Robert is speaking to them.

"I gave him the option of speaking to them or he could stay here and he wanted to speak to them.

"I think it is a fair price. We actually paid £3.6m for him so it's a loss of £1.1m over a year but as I have said I want to change things quite drastically here and everyone has their price.

"If we can get a few out and bring a few new players in with a bit of freshness I think it will only benefit us."

Chairman of football Adam Pearson doesn't expect the deal to go through quickly, however.

He said: "The clubs have agreed a fee so that part has been precise and succinct but I think the player negotiations could go on for longer.

"And obviously players go on holiday at this time of year so it is difficult to get things done as quickly as you like.

"But certainly the offer on the table is acceptable to us and hopefully the deal will proceed."

Pearson said there were other clubs interested in the Welsh international - and he wasn't surprised, given Earnshaw's goalscoring pedigree at this level.

"His track record in the Championship is a good one and I would expect there to be other clubs interested in him," he said.

"But at this moment in time the Forest offer is the only definitive one we like."

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