Nottingham Forest are set to launch an internal review into the injury suffered by striker Taiwo Awoniyi during their 2-2 draw with Leicester City at the City Ground.
The club wants to assess whether the potentially life-threatening injury, sustained when the Nigerian forward collided with the post, could have been prevented.
Awoniyi’s injury occurred in the final stages of the match as he chased down a pass from Anthony Elanga, who was later ruled offside.
However, the assistant referee did not raise the flag immediately, in line with the offside protocol introduced in 2020, which requires officials to delay their decision until the phase of play is complete.
This rule, designed to prevent incorrect stoppages, has come under fire following the incident.
Speaking to the Mail, Forest defender Ola Aina expressed frustration over the delayed flag.
“Anthony was miles offside. The whole world could see and so could I from where I was,” Aina said.
“You think ‘offside’ straight away. Surely you could just lift the flag up? None of this would have happened to ‘T’ if the flag had just gone up, would it?”
Forest owner Evangelos Marinakis also addressed the incident in a strongly worded statement, criticizing the medical team’s decision to allow Awoniyi to continue playing despite the severity of the collision.
“Everybody – coaching staff, players, supporters, and including myself – we were frustrated around the injury of Taiwo and the medical staff’s misjudgment on Taiwo’s ability to continue the game.
“This is natural, this is a demonstration of the passion we feel for our club. Let’s all be grateful, passionate and keep on dreaming!”
The review aims to assess the medical response and the impact of the current offside rule, as the club seeks to avoid similar incidents in the future.
