Nottingham Forest owner Evangelos Marinakis charged onto the pitch and appeared to confront his manager Nuno Espirito Santo at the final whistle after their match against Leicester.
Forest conceded in the last ten minutes to draw 2-2 with the Foxes, a result that dented their European aspirations.
Credit: AFP
Credit: AFP
Credit: AFP
This prompted Marinakis to enter the field of play as players, coaches, and officials were completing their post-match handshakes.
The owner initially seemed to be walking past Nuno but turned back to speak with the Forest manager after Nuno had interacted with Oliver Skipp, who he previously worked with at Tottenham.
Marinakis began gesticulating and appeared frustrated, speaking to Nuno in what seemed a forceful manner.
Nuno appeared somewhat resigned to the conversation, stretching out his arms in a gesture resembling a shrug.
He responded briefly to Marinakis, who then threw his arms in the air before walking away.
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Gary Neville criticized the owner`s behaviour, expressing dismay.
He tweeted: “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.”
Neville later reiterated his stance on Sky Sports, calling the owner`s actions “absolutely scandalous.” He added, “If I was Nuno I`d be going and having a strong word with him because that is an absolute scandal. He`s just qualified for European competition and where that club`s been, and to be remonstrated with on the pitch in front of their own fans is an absolute joke.”
Nuno later explained that Marinakis` frustration stemmed from Taiwo Awoniyi, who continued playing despite sustaining an injury after colliding with the goalpost.
Credit: Reuters
Credit: AFP
Awoniyi was asked if he needed to be substituted but indicated he could continue. Nuno subsequently used his final substitution to bring on Jota Silva for Elliot Anderson.
However, it became apparent that Awoniyi was indeed injured and unable to perform effectively for the final ten minutes, which provoked Marinakis` reaction.
Speaking after the match, Nuno commented on the emotional nature of football, acknowledging the high expectations. He described the situation with Awoniyi as a “tough moment” where they effectively had one player less due to a “misunderstanding.”
When asked specifically if the incident was due to the Awoniyi situation, Nuno confirmed it was a “misunderstanding, a miscommunication.” He added that such emotional reactions are understandable in football and shouldn`t be overly dramatized.
Marinakis later addressed the issue in a statement, which read: “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.
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 – we were 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.”
This is not the first instance of Marinakis entering the pitch after the final whistle.
In March of the previous year, he went onto the pitch to speak with officials after Darwin Nunez scored a late winner for Liverpool at the City Ground.
He was reportedly angered after Liverpool scored during nine minutes of stoppage time.
During that match, referee Paul Tierney had also stopped a Forest attack after Ibrahima Konate went down with an apparent head injury.
Marinakis was allegedly removed by security after pursuing Tierney down the tunnel.
