Injury Blow Hits Nottingham Forest Ahead of FA Cup Clash

After suffering an injury on international duty with New Zealand, club boss Nuno Espirito Santo revealed on Thursday Nottingham Forest striker Chris Wood would miss their FA Cup quarter-final against Brighton & Hove Albion.

With 18 goals for Forest in the Premier League, where the team ranks third in the rankings as they get near to Champions League qualifying, Wood has been in outstanding form this season. Wood also grabbed a hat-trick as Forest battered Brighton 7-0 in the league last month.

During the international break, the 33-year-old helped New Zealand qualify for the 2026 World Cup by netting a hat-trick against Fiji in a 7-0 demolition; unfortunately, the team’s captain hobbled off Monday’s victory over.

“We still wait; he went for a scan today. He visited a professional to get scanned. Ahead of Saturday’s game, Espirito Santo said, “We will wait on the information and see.”

“He won’t be in time for this game. He developed hip pain after he felt a really strong kick there. We had to wait.

Wood has not yet scored in the FA Cup, but he has stepped up to take Forest’s first spot kick on each of their penalty shootout victories over Exeter City and Ipswich Town.

Espirito Santo said players returning from overseas service were still waiting to see whether any further injuries surfaced.

“Every time there is a worldwide break we have to evaluate,” he said.

Many of them only came today. We shall evaluate all of them; we are still waiting for Ramon Sosa from Paraguay tomorrow.

Despite a late call-up, Morgan Gibbs-White did not play for England against Albania and Latvia; Espirito Santo claimed that should not influence his performances for Forest and he does not have to prove England head Thomas Tucher wrong.

” Hopefully he will have opportunity going forward. He doesn’t have to prove someone incorrect. This is not the mental position he ought to be in,” the Portuguese manager remarked.

“He has to play, compete, give Nottingham Forest everything he has and support his colleagues. Things will arise naturally.