Nottingham Forest manager, Nuno Espirito Santos, has revealed that Super Eagles defender Ola Aina played the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations final against Cote d’Ivoire with an injury
According to Espirito Santos, Aina picked up the injury during the semi-final win over South Africa.
The fullback missed a penalty against Bafana Bafana before Kelechi Iheanacho won the shoot-out for Nigeria.
Aina was one of the players who was singled out by fans and pundits after the Eagles lost 2-1 to the Ivorians in the final.
But speaking ahead of Nottingham’s clash against Aston Villa, Espirito Santo said: “Ola got injured in the semi-final and played the final with an injury, he tried but didn’t really play in the final.
“Ibrahim, the same, he was struggling since he was there at the AFCON.
“So the three of them (Ola, Willy, Ibrahim) are not available for this match, which is bad for us. We don’t have a date for their return,” Espirito Santo stated.
EPL: Bad for us – Nottingham manager reveals why Ola Aina struggled in AFCON final
