Nottingham Forest will make a late call on the fitness of defender Murillo for Sunday’s final-day decider with Chelsea.
The Brazilian twisted his ankle in the final minutes of the first half of last weekend’s 2-1 victory over West Ham United. It had looked as though he would be forced off at the interval in the capital but he was able to complete the whole game.
However, head coach Nuno Espirito Santo has hinted the centre-back may be a doubt for the clash with the Blues at the City Ground (4pm kick-off) which will determine the club’s European fate. Forest go into the match needing to win and have other results go their way to secure Champions League qualification.
“We are still assessing,” Nuno said of Murillo in his pre-match press conference. “He twisted his ankle and has not been able to train. Let's see tomorrow.
“We have some more (injury concerns). But let's leave it this way.”
Striker Taiwo Awoniyi is continuing to recover from the serious abdominal injury he sustained in the 2-2 draw with Leicester City a fortnight ago. Forest hope the Nigerian, who was required to undergo two operations, will be well enough to at least attend Sunday’s game.
Even if Awoniyi is not present on the banks of the Trent, the Reds are keen to secure a result as a show of support for the front man - just as they did against the Hammers. On that occasion, the squad wore T-shirts during their warm-up with Awoniyi’s name on and Morgan Gibbs-White held up his teammate’s jersey after opening the scoring.
“He's much better. He's already been able to walk. The doctor has informed us that he's starting his normal life in terms of food, so he's much better,” Nuno said of Awoniyi.
“I cannot answer whether he will be at the City Ground. I don't know. It's about the medical (information), so I'm not sure. But he’s OK.
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“We are going to be playing for T again. He is not going to be with us. It was a big issue that happened to him and it is in our minds.
“We want to see him totally healthy and joining in the group, so it is again going to be a game for T. For T, for us, for the fans, for the city, for everybody. But we just play the game.
“I hope this day is enjoyable for all of us, but we are going to face a good team. They have talented players. They are like us, in that it is a decisive game for all of us.”
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