Taiwo Awoniyi sends heartfelt message to Calvin Bassey after comeback twist
Nottingham Forest forward Taiwo Awoniyi has sent a message to Fulham defender Calvin Bassey as he continues his return from injury.
Back in May, Awoniyi was placed into a medically induced coma, following a nasty collision with the goalpost during Forest’s 2-2 draw with Leicester City.
The incident saw club owner Evangelos Marinakis storm onto the pitch at the City Ground, reportedly incandescent that the striker had been allowed to play on.
Nuno Espirito Santo’s side ended the season seventh in the Premier League, but look to have been promoted from the Conference League to the Europa League for the upcoming campaign, after Crystal Palace broke UEFA rules.
Awoniyi continues recovery from injury against Fulham
Despite the severity of the injury Awoniyi suffered at the back end of last season, the forward is already back playing matches for Nottingham Forest.
The Trentside club took on Fulham in a pre-season friendly on Saturday (26 July) with Marco Silva’s side running out as 3-1 winners.
A Harry Wilson double put the Cottagers two goals to the good, with Andreas Pereira adding a third before Chris Wood scored a consolation for Forest.
Awoniyi played the first half of the contest and took to social media after the game.
The Nigerian attacker shared an Instagram story that Fulham centre-back Bassey posted, adding the caption: “My Brother.”
Bassey and Awoniyi are teammates on the international stage.
‘Nottingham Forest to pay £7m per year‘
Off the pitch, Nottingham Forest have taken out an £80million loan with Apollo Management, a New York-based global asset management company.
The agreement will help pay off an existing loan that the club has with Rights and Media Funding Group (RMF).
The three-year loan will operate with an interest rate of 8.75%, and finance expert Stefan Borson exclusively told Football Insider Forest will have to pay around £7million of interest on the loan per annum.
It is thought that the move will give the club an extra £25m to spend, which could be used by Marinakis to invest in the redevelopment of the City Ground.