Nottingham Forest head coach Steve Cooper blasted match referee Geoff Eltringham after he denied the Reds a penalty in the first half of a 0-0 draw against Preston last night.
The Reds were on top in the opening 15 minutes and when Keinan Davis was felled in the penalty area, it looked as though Forest would win a penalty.
Despite Sepp van den Berg throwing his arms sheepishly in the air, however, Eltringham was unmoved and waved away Forest’s protests.
Cooper was convinced that his team should have been awarded the spot-kick; although he concedes it paints an accurate picture of the season so far.
He told BBC Radio Nottingham: “My personal view is that we should have had a penalty, but we don’t tend to get those decisions this season.”
“I don’t see why he goes down. He beats the man, I’ve seen it back on the television, he’s a striker; a goalscorer, so I don’t know why he would go down.
“There are cliches about things evening themselves out and stuff but that’s pivotal tonight and it could have been difficult had we been 1-0 up.”
Cooper right: Forest robbed of key decision but a win would have been harsh on Preston
Make no bones about it, Forest weren’t particularly good last night. But for the first 20 minutes, the Reds struggled to play their normal game with Preston doing a job on Cooper’s side.
Forest should have been given a penalty when Davis was felled in the box. As the Reds head coach suggests, why on earth would he need to go down once he’s beaten his man.
- STANDOUT: 26-year-old was class against Preston
The Reds will be striving for better though. The trip to Deepdale seemed somewhat rusty and Forest will be keen to be back on home soil at the weekend.
Cooper is never one to bemoan match officials. Last night, however, he had a point to criticise Eltringham for his key decision that cost Forest.
Receive a digest of our best Nottingham Forest content each week direct to your mailbox
