The real reason why Steve Cooper wasn’t picking Nottingham Forest star Joe Worrall

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A report in the aftermath of Steve Cooper leaving Nottingham Forest has explained exactly why Joe Worrall hasn’t been getting picked. The Reds captain hasn’t featured since Luton and now things have become a little clearer.

The 44-year-old head coach has departed the City Ground amid a wave of best wishes from players of past and present. Miltiadis Marinakis also sent him on his way with a classy six-word message to Cooper.

Lots of things will come out over the next few days regarding the end of his time at Forest. Now, it’s been explained why Worrall has found himself frozen out of the first-team fold.

Report explains why Worrall isn’t getting picked at Forest

Worrall hasn’t played since coming on for the final 20 minutes of a 2-2 draw against Luton in October. The 26-year-old was directly at fault for one of the goals scored by the Hatters as they grabbed a very late equaliser.

Since then, the Reds captain hasn’t been seen in action and he’s only made one matchday squad since then as well. TalkSPORT had claimed that Worrall and Scott McKenna were actually banished from training by Cooper.

Now, John Percy of The Telegraph has seemingly backed up these claims. After Cooper departed yesterday, he explained why Worrall hasn’t been getting a look in at Forest.

It’s claimed that the captain reacted angrily after being told by Cooper before the 2-0 win over Aston Villa that he would not be in the matchday squad for the game; choosing not to even attend it due to not being in the right frame of mind.

A couple of days later, it’s believed that Worrall had a heated exchange with Cooper on the training ground. Following that, he was instructed by his boss to train away from the main group.

Worrall looks to be finished at Forest

Both Leicester and Middlesbrough have been liked with a move for Worrall during the January transfer window. Even under a new head coach, it feels unlikely that he will earn a reprieve.

Quite simply, Worrall has better players ahead of him at Forest. Moussa Niakhate, Willy Boly, Murillo and Felipe have all earned minutes at centre-back in recent weeks.

Surely on the back of this news, there is no way back for Worrall at Forest. It’s hard to understand why he behaved in such a manner when he’s the captain of the football club and it seems a shame that his relationship with Cooper broke down.