- Nuno Espirito Santo has confirmed Taiwo Awoniyi’s injury following his collision
- On Tuesday, the Nottingham Forest star was taken from the pitch on a stretcher
- LISTEN NOW: It’s All Kicking Off! Is there an agenda against Ange Postecoglou?
Nuno Espirito Santo has confirmed Taiwo Awoniyi sustained a concussion and a broken nose during Nottingham Forest’s shootout win over Exeter on Tuesday night.
The Nigerian striker required more than 10 minutes of treatment before leaving the pitch on a stretcher after colliding with the elbow of Exeter goalkeeper Joe Whitworth towards the end of the FA Cup fourth-round tie.
Despite initial fears that his condition could be more serious, Espirito Santo disclosed Awoniyi, who had scored prior to the injury, would travel back to the Midlands with the rest of the squad.
He said: ‘He had a concussion and I think he broke his nose, so a lot of pain, but he has a smile on his face that because he did an amazing job. We are delighted with him.’
Forest faced an almighty scare in Devon before a 2-2 draw took the game to penalties. Espirito Santo risked accusations of complacency after making 10 changes to his side, but defended his selection.
He said: ‘It’s not it’s not about resting (players), it’s about how we are approaching the competition. We did the same at Luton, and we’re going to probably do the same (again) because, unfortunately, we cannot give minutes to all the players. So this is a reward for all the players that worked so hard, the young boys. It’s good for us.
Nuno Espirito Santo has provided an injury update on Taiwo Awoniyi following a brutal collision
The Forest boss confirmed the 27-year-old player sustained a concussion and a broken nose
The Nigerian was taken from the pitch on a stretcher but seemed to recover as he made his way to the dressing room
‘It’s not resting players. It’s taking care of all the squad.’
Espirito Santo, whose side face Ipswich in the fifth round, added: ‘The FA Cup is very hard, and just look at the draws that came. A lot of surprises will happen. We just have to do our job. It’s going to be at the City Ground, and we’re going to be ready.’
