Nottingham Forest manager Nuno Espirito Santo has provided an update on the injury status of Super Eagles defender Ola Aina ahead of his side’s crucial Premier League match against Brentford on Thursday, May 1, Footynaija.com reports.
Forest welcome Brentford to The City Ground on Thursday for their rescheduled 34th game of the season, originally postponed due to Forest’s extended FA Cup run, which ended in a 2-0 semi-final defeat to Manchester City at Wembley.
With their cup journey now over, Forest will turn their full attention to the Premier League, where they are locked in a fierce battle for Champions League qualification.
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Heading into Thursday’s game, they occupy sixth position with a tally of 60 points from 33 games. However, victory over Brentford would see them leapfrog rivals Chelsea, Man City and Newcastle United to nestle in third place.
Aina, who was one of the Tricky Trees’ most vital players before his injury at the start of April is still sidelined with a calf injury and according to Forest boss Nuno, the Nigeria international will not be ready to contribute in Thursday’s game.
“We have a lot of players to assess. It was a very demanding game and a lot of players finished with cramp. We are assessing all of them,” he said in quotes revealed by Nottingham Post.
“Ola’s injury status is still the same. We still have one more day. We are assessing all the players and trying to make the right decisions.
“All the players who have been out are important to us. We have spoken many times about that. We have been missing Ola, especially because of the stability of the back four we had and the routines.
“I don’t know how many times we had the same players – that’s crucial, especially in defence. We will assess him and see how fast he can return to the team.”
True to Nuno’s words, Forest have missed Aina. With the Nigerian full-back out of the picture, they have struggled defensively, losing three of their last four games in a competitions.
