NOTTINGHAM FOREST FACE EUROPA LEAGUE PLAY-OFF NIGHTMARE AFTER DISASTROUS RYAN YATES OWN GOAL
Nottingham Forest’s 1-0 loss to Braga leaves Sean Dyche under fire as Lorenzo Lucca arrives for a medical to solve the striker crisis.
Sean Dyche and his players didn’t just hear the boos from Nottingham Forest fans in Portugal—they felt every bit of it. Ryan Yates’ own goal summed up a night that went from bad to worse, especially after Elliot Anderson picked up a red card late on. The mood? Flat, frustrated, and just about fed up.
Now Forest’s hopes of cracking the top eight in the Europa League group are hanging by a thread. They need a win over Ferencvaros at the City Ground next week just to make the play-off round. Even that doesn’t seem to be enough for the fans, who made it clear they’ve had it.
It all unravelled so quickly. Gibbs-White missed a penalty, and less than a minute later, Yates tried to cut out a cross and ended up scoring at the wrong end. You can forgive a freak goal if the team’s fighting, but the 2,100 Forest fans who made the trip weren’t buying it. They booed the players off at half-time and let them have it again in the second half. Some even started chanting, “Sideways and backwards, everywhere we go,” as Forest struggled to lay a glove on Braga.
The dig at Dyche’s style wasn’t subtle. He’s always drawn flak for his direct approach, but this was something else.
Yates’ own goal sealed the defeat. Braga’s subs piled onto the pitch to celebrate, while Gibbs-White could only think about his missed penalty. Nobody in a Forest shirt escaped the crowd’s anger. New signings Bakwa and McAtee were booed as they went off, and Dyche is desperate for a reaction at Brentford on Saturday to calm things down.
He brought on Anderson, Hudson-Odoi, and Williams in the second half, and honestly, all three look set to start at Brentford. Dyche had shuffled his eleven, making seven changes, and with Igor Jesus out hurt, Forest didn’t even have a real striker. That could change if Lorenzo Lucca’s loan from Napoli goes through—he might debut on Sunday, assuming he passes his medical.
The first half barely offered anything worth remembering. Gibbs-White forced a save from Hornicek, while Martinez should’ve put Braga ahead but headed wide. After the break, Horta missed a sitter for Braga, but then Forest nearly stole the lead. Martinez bundled McAtee over in the box, and after a long delay, Gibbs-White stepped up... and Hornicek saved.
And then, just seconds later, disaster. Horta found space, Yates got tangled up trying to clear, and the ball trickled into his own goal. Forest fans groaned louder. Gibbs-White tried to make up for it but blasted over, and Ola Aina rattled the crossbar with a thunderbolt. Braga hit the post on a counter, then in a chaotic scramble, Ndoye and Yates almost levelled things, but it just wasn’t their night.
Let’s be honest: Forest were poor. Braga weren’t much better. But with UEFA stretching these group stages to protect the big clubs and rake in more cash, you end up with nights like this—matches that feel almost pointless. Both teams knew losing didn’t really change much. That’s what hurts the most.
THOMAS TUCHEL NAMES EXPANDED ENGLAND SQUAD FEATURING FOUR SURPRISE NEW INCLUSIONS
Thomas Tuchel hands maiden England call-ups to James Garner and Jason Steele while omitting Trent Alexander-Arnold.
James Garner from Everton and Brighton’s goalkeeper Jason Steele have earned their first call-ups to the England squad. Alongside them, AC Milan’s defender Fikayo Tomori and Tottenham’s forward Dominic Solanke have also been included. However, Trent Alexander-Arnold and Luke Shaw did not make the cut this time.
Jude Bellingham, despite being sidelined since early February due to a hamstring injury, is still part of the squad. Experienced centre-back Harry Maguire, now 33, has the chance to add to his 64 caps, while 20-year-old Kobbie Mainoo, who started in the Euro 2024 final, is also selected. Both last represented England in September 2024 but have been rewarded for Manchester United’s recent good form, which has lifted them to third place in the Premier League.
Luke Shaw, pushing for inclusion, has been overlooked once again. Instead, Tuchel has called up Newcastle’s Lewis Hall, marking his first call-up since Tuchel took over.
This squad is larger than usual, with players arriving in two phases during the international window. Tuchel explained on the Football Association’s website that the first group includes players who haven’t played much recently, aiming to broaden competition for spots in the upcoming US tour. Then, from Friday to Saturday, another group will join, including some who’ve had a short rest, to mix things up for the match against Japan.
England will face Uruguay at Wembley on March 27, followed by a home game against Japan on March 31. Looking ahead, the World Cup kicks off on June 11 in Canada, Mexico, and the United States, with England considered among the contenders.
Here’s the full squad breakdown:
Goalkeepers: Dean Henderson (Crystal Palace), Jordan Pickford (Everton), James Trafford (Manchester City), Aaron Ramsdale (Newcastle), Jason Steele (Brighton)
Defenders: Dan Burn (Newcastle), Marc Guehi (Crystal Palace), Lewis Hall (Newcastle), Ezri Konsa (Aston Villa), Tino Livramento (Newcastle), Harry Maguire (Manchester United), Nico O’Reilly (Manchester City), Jarell Quansah (Bayer Leverkusen), Djed Spence (Tottenham), John Stones (Manchester City), Fikayo Tomori (AC Milan)
Midfielders: Elliot Anderson (Nottingham Forest), Jude Bellingham (Real Madrid), James Garner (Everton), Jordan Henderson (Brentford), Kobbie Mainoo (Manchester United), Declan Rice (Arsenal), Morgan Rogers (Aston Villa), Adam Wharton (Crystal Palace)
Forwards: Jarrod Bowen (West Ham), Dominic Calvert-Lewin (Leeds), Eberechi Eze (Arsenal), Phil Foden (Manchester City), Anthony Gordon (Newcastle), Harry Kane (Bayern Munich), Noni Madueke (Arsenal), Cole Palmer (Chelsea), Marcus Rashford (Barcelona), Bukayo Saka (Arsenal), Dominic Solanke (Tottenham)
WHY CAF STRIPPED SENEGAL OF THEIR AFRICA CUP OF NATIONS TITLE
Following a final walk-off, Senegal has lost its AFCON trophy in the boardroom, prompting an appeal to CAS by the FSF.
Moussa Niakhate finally spoke out after the Confederation of African Football’s shocking decision to take Senegal’s Africa Cup of Nations trophy away. After that wild walk-off in the final against Morocco, CAF backed an appeal and handed the host nation a 3-0 win by default. Senegalese players were furious; who wouldn’t be?
The boardroom decision completely flipped African football on its head. Two months after the final, the CAF Appeal Board tossed out Senegal’s victory and gave Morocco the win. It all started deep into stoppage time when VAR gave Morocco a penalty. Pape Thiaw, Senegal’s manager, lost it and told his players to leave the field. Eventually, they came back and finished the match. Still, officials said the walk-off broke tournament rules, so they took the title away. Brutal.
Niakhate, the 30-year-old defender who was key in Senegal’s backline, got asked about it before Lyon’s Europa League match with Celta. He’d already posted a photo with his medal and the trophy right after the ruling. He made it clear: nothing a boardroom says can erase what happened on the pitch. He said, “Out of respect for the club and with the crucial match in mind, I don’t want to go into too much detail. You saw my reaction on social media; it’s the same today. What I can say is that nothing has changed for me compared to what we went through in January. I’ll have time to talk about it again in due course; for now, I’m going to stay focused on Lyon.”
That final in Rabat was pure chaos, even before Senegal won 1-0 on the field. Most players followed Thiaw down the tunnel, but Sadio Mane stayed, urging his teammates to come back. Brahim Diaz took the penalty but tried a Panenka, and Edouard Mendy caught it easily. The game went to extra time, Papa Gueye scored, and Senegal thought they were champions again. It didn't matter; the walk-off cost them everything. The committee called it a 3-0 forfeit.
It’s harsh for a team that believed they’d gone back-to-back. Niakhate, who started six out of seven games, is now focusing on Lyon’s European campaign. Still, that boardroom drama isn’t going away, not with the international break coming up. Senegal’s already planning to appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
