Nottingham Forest manager Nuno Espirito Santo is hopeful that injured striker Taiwo Awoniyi could reunite with his teammates next week, though the Nigerian remains hospitalised following emergency surgery for a ruptured intestine.

Awoniyi underwent urgent surgery after colliding with a goalpost during Forest’s 2-2 draw with Leicester City last weekend, an incident that has since sparked debate over the delayed offside rule introduced in 2020.

“The information we have is that he has to be there (in hospital) for at least five days under observation. I will try to visit as soon as possible. He is in good hands and has his family there,” Nuno said.

The Forest boss confirmed Awoniyi’s surgery had gone well, expressing relief at the positive outcome.

“He went to surgery, surgery went well, thank God. He is under observation now, but he is recovering; we still have to wait for the doctors to allow visits,” Nuno said.

Forest players have maintained contact with their injured teammate through group chats and will show their support for the Nigerian at West Ham on Sunday.

“The players are constantly chatting in their groups, and we know he is well. He just needs time.

“I hope next week he can join us and be around. He is a wonderful boy, and this season has been so hard on him. We feel so sorry,” the Portuguese tactician added.

The injury occurred in the closing stages of last Sunday’s match when Awoniyi collided with the post while attempting to convert a low cross that would have given Forest a 3-2 lead, unaware he would have been flagged offside. Despite the collision, the 27-year-old completed around seven minutes of added time before being rushed into emergency surgery the following day.

Awoniyi’s Forest and Nigeria teammate, Ola Aina, confirmed to the Daily Mail that he had tried to contact the striker.

“I have sent him a message, of course. The whole team has, I have heard he is recovering well, so hopefully we will hear from him soon.”

Aina also criticised the delayed offside rule, which he believes contributed to the incident, saying, “You think ‘offside’ straight away. Surely you could just lift the flag up? Anthony (Elanga) was miles offside.

“The whole world could see, and so could I from where I was. Having to see it out and then just see this happen. None of this would have happened to T (Awoniyi) if the flag had just gone up.”

The serious nature of Awoniyi’s injury has brought fresh scrutiny to the IFAB directive, which states that delaying the flag is only permissible in clear attacking situations when a player is about to score or has a clear run towards the opponents’ penalty area.

Earlier this season, Awoniyi suffered a broken nose in an FA Cup tie at Exeter City, while the form of Chris Wood has restricted him to just 402 minutes in the Premier League. A potential recovery timeline has yet to be suggested due to the seriousness of his current injury.