Nottingham Forest hope to return to winning ways in the Premier League on Sunday when they meet bottom club Southampton, but one aspect of the game will concern Forest fans.
Forest’s extraordinary seven-game winning streak came to an end on Tuesday as they drew with Liverpool. Arne Slot commended Matz Sels for his performance in the game, while football fans were impressed with Murillo’s performance against Liverpool.
The two should be less busy on Sunday, as Southampton travels to the City Ground having only six Premier League points this season.
Forest won the reverse encounter in August owing to a goal by Morgan Gibbs-White, although Forest fans chastised him for his performance at St Mary’s.
Nuno Espirito Santo’s team has only improved since that game, so the outcome should be simple. However, one notification from the Premier League regarding the match has alarmed Forest supporters.
The referee for the match between Nottingham Forest and Southampton has been announced
The Premier League has released the referee appointments for match week 22, which is worrisome news for Forest fans.
Anthony Taylor will take the officiating lead in the match, and some fans are skeptical of his ability owing to his past with the club.
Taylor most recently refereed Espirito Santo’s team in Forest’s 3-1 defeat to Newcastle in November, a game in which Kevin Nolan believed Dan Burn should have been sent off but the referee missed it.
Forest fans also chastised Taylor for his performance in Newcastle’s defeat, which will add to their fears as he returns to the City Ground this Sunday. However, the Newcastle game was hardly the most contentious Forest game Taylor has officiated.
Anthony Taylor refereed the classic Nottingham Forest vs. Everton contest.
Forest lost to Everton in April 2024 after Taylor made three dubious penalty calls against the Forest squad, prompting the club to issue a statement criticizing the officiating in the game.
Alan Shearer criticized Forest’s statement, which ultimately led to Forest being penalized by the FA for criticizing VAR.
While Taylor was the on-field referee and the statement mostly targeted the VAR officials, he failed to act on the penalty allegations, which continue to enrage Forest fans to this day.
Forest fans will be hoping to avoid a repetition of Taylor’s performance and the subsequent off-pitch turmoil, which resulted in Evangelos Marinakis having to pay a fine that the club could do without.
