Super Eagles and Nottingham Forest defender, Ola Aina, has heavily criticized the match officials involved in his side’s recent clash against Leicester City, following a serious injury to his teammate Taiwo Awoniyi.
The incident occurred when Awoniyi collided with the woodwork under pressure from Facundo Buonanotte, while attempting to latch onto a pass from Anthony Elanga. Elanga was in an offside position, but the assistant referee delayed raising the flag.
Awoniyi initially tried to continue playing but was eventually withdrawn due to the severe pain. Forest had already used all their substitutions, forcing them to finish the game with ten men. The incident also reportedly led to a confrontation between Forest manager Nuno Espirito Santo and club owner Evangelos Marinakis.
It was later revealed that Awoniyi had suffered a ruptured intestine and underwent emergency surgery on Monday night. He was subsequently placed in an induced coma for further procedures. Awoniyi has since been brought out of the coma and is said to be responding well to treatment.
Aina, speaking to Mail Sport, expressed his frustration, stating that the severity of Awoniyi’s injury could have been prevented. “This is our teammate and brother and someone we spend most of the year with. It affects everybody in some sort of way. All we can do is show our support, and hopefully, everything goes well for him now,” Aina said.
He further added, “It’s horrible seeing someone you are close with go through something like this, but I pray to God everything goes to plan and goes well and that we will be hearing from him soon. I have sent him messages. We all have.”
Aina also revealed his initial reaction to the incident, saying, “I didn’t even know what happened at the time and I didn’t realise how serious it was. When I saw him come back on, I thought, “He will run it off”. I thought it was one of those things. I know from my experience that when I get hurt, I think I can come back on. You don’t want to stop.”
Aina’s comments highlight the ongoing debate surrounding the delayed offside flag rule and its potential consequences.
