Wayne Rooney notices something controversial Gibbs-White did in MOTD footage vs Man City
Nottingham Forest were unable to return to winning ways on Saturday as they fell to a 2-1 defeat against Man City.
The result leaves Sean Dyche’s side 17th in the Premier League as they look to avoid relegation.
While a defeat was widely expected against Pep Guardiola’s side, it came in controversial fashion, with Rob Jones making multiple contentious decisions at the City Ground.
One of the biggest came at the end of the game, when Rayan Cherki netted a winner for the visitors, despite protests from the Forest players, including Morgan Gibbs-White.
Full-time. pic.twitter.com/w4eaMve2Aa
— Nottingham Forest (@NFFC) December 27, 2025
Wayne Rooney: Rayan Cherki’s goal should have stood
With Nottingham Forest aiming to stay in the Premier League, the East Midlands side need all the luck they can get to remain afloat.
However, on Saturday, plenty of dubious decisions went against Dyche’s side, including Man City’s winner.
Moments before Cherki’s strike, Gibbs-White went down inside the box after a clash with Nico O’Reilly.
However, despite the protests from the Forest players, not only does Wayne Rooney believe it shouldn’t have been a free-kick for the hosts, but he insists that it was actually Gibbs-White who committed the foul.
He told BBC’s Match of the Day on 27 December: “I actually think it is a foul on O’Reilly. If you look at Gibbs-White here, he grabs his arm and then locks his leg in into O’Reilly and pulls him down, so I’ve got no complaints.
“You can see here, he locks his arm in, and then, just with his left leg, he locks it in and pulls O’Reilly down to the ground.
“I think it is a good goal, and it should have stood.”
What are Nottingham Forest’s chances of relegation?
Despite the defeat, Forest’s chances of relegation remain low.
On Saturday, West Ham were also defeated 1-0 against Fulham, therefore maintaining the five-point gap between 17th and 18th.
As a result, according to Opta on 28 December, Forest’s chances of relegation continue to remain slim.
The supercomputer believes that the current bottom three are likely to remain in their current positions by the end of the season.
- Wolves, Burnley and West Ham are predicted to go down
- Nottingham Forest are fifth-favourites to be relegated this season
- It remains to be seen if Dyche can lead them to survival
Forest have a 16.77 per cent chance of relegation, while West Ham have a whopping 70.47 per cent chance.
The odds of Leeds going down also sit higher than Dyche’s side at 16.83 per cent.