When Nottingham Forest plays Aston Villa in the Premier League on Saturday, their three Africa Cup of Nations finalists will be absent.
While competing for their nations in the competition, midfielder Ibrahim Sangare and defenders Ola Aina and Willy Boly sustained injuries. The three were ruled out of last weekend’s 2-0 victory against West Ham United and will now miss the trip to Villa Park. However, they were able to reunite with their Reds teammates towards the end of last week.
The length of their potential absence from action is unknown, according to head coach Nuno Espirito Santo. In the AFCON final, Aina played the entire ninety minutes for Nigeria, whereas Boly and Sangare did not play for the winning Ivory Coast team.
“We are facing a few issues,” Nuno stated. “The trio of athletes that made a comeback are not accessible. Ola, Willy, and Ibrahim all arrived with injuries, therefore they won’t be able to play in this game. There is no set date for their return.
“Ola tried but didn’t really play in the final after getting hurt in the semi-final. He played the final with an injury. Ibrahim was also having difficulties ever since the AFCON. We are therefore unfortunate that the three of them are unavailable.
Chris Wood is remains sidelined for Forest because of a hamstring injury. Gonzalo Montiel, the right-back, has resumed his training, and Taiwo Awoniyi, the striker, is still working to regain match fitness following groin surgery. Awoniyi was substituted against the Hammers in the 67th minute, although he later declared himself “fine” and predicted to be eligible to play against Villa.
