Nottingham Forest’s owner was filmed confronting his club’s manager on the pitch following their 2-2 draw with Leicester City.
Evangelos Marinakis entered the pitch after the Premier League match and was seen castigating manager Nuno Espirito Santo in front of the team’s fans.
The draw saw Forest’s hopes of qualifying for next year’s Champions League dented.
Marinakis, however, was frustrated at his manager for not substituting 27-year-old forward Taiwo Awoniyi after he suffered an injury while colliding with a goalpost.
That decision meant injured Awoniyi played for the final ten minutes but wasn’t able to contribute to the game, according to the manager.
The confrontation drew widespread criticism of Marinakis, with former Manchester United star Gary Neville posting on X: “Scandalous from that Forest owner. Nuno should go and negotiate his exit tonight with him! The Forest fans, players and manager do not deserve that”
Football broadcaster Des Kelly called Marinakis a “big baby” for his “tantrum out on the pitch”. “What an embarrassment,” he wrote in a post on X.
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After the match, Espirito Santo confirmed the confrontation was about Awoniyi’s injury.
“It was due to the situation,” he told Sky Sports. “We got information [Awoniyi] was okay to keep going,” he said in a statement.
“Unfortunately, we didn’t have another stoppage to change him and he was not able to continue to help the team. We’re all frustrated.”
Although Forest made history this season and will now play in Europe – likely either in the UEFA Europa League or UEFA Conference League – many fans hoped they would make it to the Champions League.
While still a possibility, the draw means Forest will have to rely on teams above them dropping points in the final two games of the season.
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In a statement posted on social media, Marinakis admitted he was frustrated at the end of the match.
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“Today is a day for celebration, because after 30 years, Nottingham Forest is now guaranteed to be competing on the European stage once again – a promise I made to our supporters when we achieved promotion!”
“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!”
