Forest star Awoniyi in medically induced coma following emergency surgery

The 27-year-old Nigeria international Taiwo Awoniyi underwent an urgent abdominal surgery on Monday night after sustaining a serious injury on final minutes of Sunday's 2-2 draw against Leicester City. Forest striker has been placed in a medically induced coma however club sources indicate his condition is not life-threatening.

The incident occurred late in the match when Awoniyi collided with a goalpost. After receiving several minutes of on-field treatment, he was initially permitted to continue playing. However, the full extent of his internal injuries was only discovered by the club's medical team on Monday, leading to his immediate hospitalization and subsequent emergency surgery that same night.

It is understood that the decision to place Awoniyi in an induced coma is a precautionary measure designed to restrict his movement and help regulate his heart rate, thereby creating an optimal environment for healing. Nottingham Forest had released a statement on Tuesday afternoon, prior to the news of the induced coma, indicating that the player was "recovering well" post-surgery.

In a separate development connected to the match, the club also commented that the severity of Awoniyi’s injury serves to validate owner Evangelos Marinakis’s actions when he went onto the pitch following the game. Forest dismissed reports of a confrontation between Marinakis and manager Nuno Espírito Santo as "fake news”.