Former Arsenal defender Martin Keown has now weighed in on Nottingham Forest’s points deduction debate.
Nuno Espirito Santo‘s side face a tough challenge this weekend in their rearranged fixture against Tottenham Hotspur.
The Portuguese boss will face a return to his former club where he spent just a matter of months before being sacked.
Perhaps there will be more than just three points on offer for Nuno with a point to prove to his potential employees also to be gained.
Forest go into the game against Spurs having dispatched of Fulham on Tuesday night at the City Ground in a game where Morgan Gibbs-White shone.
The 24-year-old has been hailed on the back of his display against the Cottagers, but there is speculation surrounding a potential move for him in the summer.
Ironically, Gibbs-White could be auditioning in front of his potential new employees on the weekend with Tottenham said to be keen on the midfielder.
However, Forest remain focused on battling against the drop on the back of their recent four-point deduction after their breach of PSR.
Keown weighs in on Forest’s points deduction live on TalkSPORT
Forest are not the only side to have been slapped on the wrists with a points deduction by the Premier League this season.
Fellow strugglers Everton have also fallen short of the rules and been handed a points deduction themselves.
Nuno’s men have battled against the drop over the last few games with four points coming from their two games since the international break.
But the points deduction remains a strong topic of discussion for Forest with Matt Turner admitting the players can’t help but talk about it behind the scenes.
Even the manager has admitted he ended up punching something when he found out the news his side were going to be deducted four points.
But what is done is now done and Forest are looking like they are just getting on with the matter in hand as each game goes by.
However, speaking on TalkSPORT, the Arsenal legend has insisted that the points deduction remains incredibly harsh on Forest.
“Forest were in a difficult situation. They had hardly any players signed on a full contract,” he said.
“And now they are being punished because they had to furnish themselves with players. What else were they supposed to do?”
Forest may be forced to sell some of their star players
Having sold Brennan Johnson to Spurs last summer for a fee of £47.5m, Forest could be forced to do the same again this summer.
It has already been claimed Gibbs-White and Murillo are players who Forest consider to be worth over £50m each.
Reports have even suggested that Forest feel the centre-back could be worth up to £70m in the future.
Considering Forest have already been forced to sell Johnson in the last 12 months, adding to the player sales through necessity of keeping on the right side of PSR – again – will be frustrating for everyone at the club.
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