Nottingham Forest will be without Morgan Gibbs-White when Leeds United return to the City Ground for Tuesday night’s Carabao Cup second-round tie.
The midfielder played the full game against Leeds on Saturday, but picked up an ankle and knee issue during the second half. Oliver Glasner has now confirmed that Gibbs-White won’t be risked for the cup match.
Forest were beaten 1-0 by Leeds in the Premier League opener, with Anton Stach scoring the winner late on. They now have a very quick chance to respond, but they will have to do it without one of their most important players.
Gibbs-White injury explained by Glasner
Glasner revealed that Gibbs-White twisted his ankle while playing against Leeds, which also affected his knee.
“Morgan Gibbs-White will miss tomorrow’s game. He got the ball and twisted his ankle, so the MCL was a little bit overstretched and he has some pain in his knee,” Oliver Glasner said.
There is some good news, though. The Forest boss said there is no structural damage, which means the decision to leave him out is more about avoiding unnecessary risk.
“There is no structural damage, but there’s no point in risking him tomorrow. We’re working really hard to get him fit for the Liverpool game on Saturday, but he can’t make tomorrow’s game.”
That Liverpool game is now clearly in the back of Glasner’s mind.
The Forest head coach is already dealing with two other absentees. Ryan Yates and Nicolo Savona remain unavailable, meaning Tuesday’s cup tie will give Glasner plenty of options to rotate his squad.
“It’s still (Ryan) Yates and (Nicolò) Savona who are out.”
Forest set to make changes against Leeds United
The quick turnaround has also influenced Glasner’s approach.
Nottingham Forest played Leeds on Saturday and now face them again only three days later. With the cup bringing another game so soon after the league opener, the Austrian is expected to make changes to his side.
“A lot of players look good and fresh and tomorrow is a cup competition. We want to have the same approach no matter the competition and try to win a trophy.”
Glasner also pointed to the unusual nature of pre-season for some of his squad. A number of players returned late and haven’t had much preparation time, which makes throwing them into another match so quickly a risk.
“We’ve had players come back late and have only had a few weeks for pre-season, so there’s no point risking them for a second competitive game in quick succession.”
John Victor is expected to start in goal, while Ousmane Diomande could get his first appearance for Forest since joining from Sporting Lisbon.
New signing, Diomande was on the bench against Leeds after arriving late and was not considered ready to take part in the Leeds defeat. The Cup game will give Nottingham Forest a chance to see their latest signing make his competitive debut for the East Midlands outfit.
Forest lost the opening Premier League fixture but are adamant on making amends for the loss. They will have to do that against Leeds United without their star midfielder, Morgan Gibbs-White.
“We’ll have fresh minds and we’ll try to win the game.”
