Nottingham Forest had to make do without Morgan Gibbs-White on Monday night as the Reds took on Crystal Palace at the City Ground.
Forest didn’t feel the impact of his absence too much as a Chris Wood goal ensured a 1-0 win for the Reds.
Matz Sels was in fine form between the posts and Forest did perhaps have to ride their luck for some of the latest Premier League clash.
Gibbs-White was replaced in the number 10 position by Elliot Anderson against Palace and he gave a good account of himself.
The man signed for £35 million from Newcastle was named Man of the Match and Anderson received praise from Adrian Durham.
Gibbs-White is exceptional though and the sooner he is back from injury the better.
The 24-year-old picked up a problem with his ankle in a recent draw against Chelsea and on Monday night he was suspended anyway.
Now, Espirito Santo has been quizzed on the player ahead of Friday’s game against Leicester.
Nuno Espirito Santo delivers fitness update on Morgan Gibbs-White
Ahead of Friday’s game, Espirito Santo has given his pre-match press conference and there is some news on Gibbs-White.
The hope will be that he can recover in time to make the short trip to Leicester but it’s a day-to-day thing for the club.
Espirito Santo told the media on YouTube: “It is a day-by-day process so let’s see how he is. He is better today, so let’s hope he’s even better tomorrow and keeps progressing.
“We’re still assessing everyone because it was a tough game on Monday. We still have one day to go and players are recovering.”
Forest have options if Morgan Gibbs-White isn’t fit
The beauty of Forest losing Gibbs-White is that it shouldn’t impact the team as much as it might have done in his first two seasons at the club.
Anderson filled in with aplomb on Monday and it’s surely his shirt to lose right now.
There is also Jota Silva pushing for a start on Trentside after several impactful sub appearances since he signed for the Reds.
Espirito Santo is blessed with a number of players who can now fill in and make the impact of an injury feel less significant.
With this game coming up something of a derby clash it would be great to have Gibbs-White fit and available.
However, if he’s not then the team will still look strong and be capable of getting a result against the Foxes.
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