Nottingham Forest are hopeful that Morgan Gibbs-White could be fit to face Crystal Palace after the international break.
There were fears that the influential midfielder could face a longer spell on the sidelines after he suffered an ankle injury at Stamford Bridge that the club initially feared could be serious.
But, while he still faces a battle to be fit for the visit of Palace on Monday, October 21, he does have a fighting chance of recovering in time, after scans revealed that he has suffered a sprain, rather than any significant ligament damage.
Gibbs-White sustained the injury during the second half of Sunday’s 1-1 draw with Chelsea. The 24-year-old appeared to twist his left ankle — his standing foot — while seeing a shot blocked on the edge of the penalty area.
Forest head coach Nuno Espirito Santo said he was “worried” about Gibbs-White’s injury after the game and the attacking midfielder then pulled out of the England squad on Monday. Gibbs-White had made his senior debut during last month’s international break, featuring as a second-half substitute in the 2-0 win over Republic of Ireland.
Gibbs-White has been a key player at Forest since joining from Wolverhampton Wanderers for £25million ($32.7m) rising to £42m in the summer of 2022. Last season, he contributed 10 assists and five goals in 37 Premier League games. This term, he has scored once in six league appearances.
Forest are 10th in the Premier League but have only lost one of their opening seven fixtures, winning twice and drawing four times. After the international break, they host Palace and then face rivals Leicester City at the King Power Stadium four days later.
‘A major to boost to Forest if he doesn’t miss a fixture’
It will be a huge blow to Gibbs-White to miss his opportunity to build on his brief but positive debut with England.
But while he will not be part of Lee Carsley’s squad in the coming days, it is a major boost to Forest that he might not miss a single Premier League fixture.
Forest badly missed Gibbs-White even when he sat out a single game, the 1-0 defeat against Fulham, following his red card at Brighton & Hove Albion. And the prospect of him facing any significant spell on the sidelines was not a welcome one.
Gibbs-White is more than just a creative figure for Forest, he is developing into a player who leads by example on the pitch.
In the aftermath of his sending-off, which saw him collect a second yellow card for a robust challenge on Brighton’s Joao Pedro, Nuno insisted that he does not want Gibbs-White to change his mentality or approach.
The key match incidents panel voted 3-2 that the yellow card was not justified and that he should not have been sent off.
And the manner of the challenge — chasing back to make a determined challenge to help his team — is exactly what Nuno wants to see from a player who has often worn the captain’s armband when Ryan Yates has not played.
Gibbs-White is also the most intelligent footballer in the Forest side and the void he leaves when he is not available is hugely difficult to fill.
(Michael Regan/Getty Images)
