Craig Westcarr has been discussing one Nottingham Forest star after last weekend’s 3-1 defeat at Tottenham. The Reds remain embroiled in relegation trouble with just weeks of the season remaining.
In truth, losing at Tottenham won’t be season-defining. Had Chris Wood scored his second goal of the afternoon with the scores locked at 1-1, things might have gone differently for Forest.
Westcarr was a guest on this week’s edition of Team Talk on Notts TV. Talk on there turned towards one particular incident during the game that has proved a bit of a talking point.
The flash point came in the first half when Ryan Yates ended up on the floor following an incident with James Maddison. After a lengthy VAR check, play resumed with a talking to for each player.
Westcarr has been quizzed on the incident and he’s not entirely surprised that Yates was in the thick of the action for Forest.
Craig Westcarr delivers verdict on Forest star Ryan Yates
The former Forest striker is still playing in non-league with Sherwood Colliery and this season he’s helped them win promotion.
He’s still a keen watcher of Forest though after rising through the City Ground youth ranks and he was keeping in touch with the game at the weekend.
Westcarr had some words on the incident involving Yates and he reminds him of a former Premier League midfielder who simply loved to wind people up.
He told Team Talk on Notts TV: “I think it was a bit of a tap in the stomach. Yates has got history, hasn’t he?
“He reminds me of Robbie Savage. Robbie was better but he just goes around trying to wind people up.
“I think he’s obviously said something to Maddison and he’s just given him a tap.”
Yates could have handled situation better
We actually agree with Westcarr that Savage was a better player than Yates. However, he’s right to suggest he’s similar in the sense that he winds players up.
Jamie Carragher raved about Yates for being a nuisance last season – and again, it’s hard to disagree with that notion when the Forest man is on the pitch.
Now, Yates must learn from these incidents and it is fair to say that perhaps the Forest academy graduate didn’t cover himself in glory.
Tottenham were still on the attack when it happened and it wasn’t a punch worthy of keeping Yates on the floor for as long as it did.
Instead, he sat on the floor and gestured for a VAR check. That wouldn’t have been an issue had Yates not already been booked and by the letter of the law he perhaps nearly saw red too.
Yates is only 26 and being a regular captain is new to him. Hopefully, he can learn from this and handle this type of situation better next time.
The post 'Reminds me of Robbie Savage': Craig Westcarr says Nottingham Forest star is a wind-up merchant appeared first on Nottingham Forest News.