Nottingham Forest owner Evangelos Marinakis has issued a statement explaining why he confronted Nuno Espirito Santo after the final whistle against Leicester City. The bizarre exchange came after Forest were forced to share the spoils, conceding a late equaliser to the Foxes. While it came as a bitter blow, a point was enough to confirm European football next season.
After the final whistle, Nuno was given a furious dressing-down by Marinakis which took place in full view of the TV cameras. Marinakis stormed onto the pitch before appearing to berate his manager while throwing his arms around in frustration. He eventually walked away from the scene, leaving Nuno with a puzzled and slightly frustrated look on his face.
Marinakis has since issued a statement explaining his side of the story. He said the club’s medical team were the source of his fury due to their handling of the late injury suffered by Taiwo Awoniyi, which left Forest a player short in the closing minutes.
“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,” wrote Marinakis.
“With two more games to go in the Premier League, we must keep believing and keep dreaming, right to the final kick in the final game.
“We are extremely proud and close to Nuno and the team, and we must all celebrate the historic achievements of this season.
“Everybody, coaching staff, players, supporters and including myself, were all frustrated around the injury of Taiwo and the medical staff’s misjudgement 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.”
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