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Nuno Espirito Santo says he thinks Nottingham Forest forward Taiwo Awoniyi broke his nose after a sickening collision during their FA Cup win. A 10-man Exeter City side pushed Forest all the way to penalties after it finished 2-2 in regular time at St James' Park. However, Forest's quality shone through from the spot as they didn't miss a single penalty, while Exeter had one saved and one smack the crossbar. Unfortunately for Forest, a spot in the fifth round came at a cost given Awoniyi's injury. In second half stoppage time, Awoniyi jumped up to contest a ball but it was punched to safety by Exeter goalkeeper Joe Whitworth. But in the process of punching the ball, Whitworth caught Awoniyi square in the face as the pair fell to the ground. Medical staff from both sets of teams raced onto the pitch to treat their respective players. It quickly emerged Awoniyi required serious treatment when blood began pouring from his nose. As Awoniyi received treatment, broadcasters ITV showed images of the crowd and players from both teams receiving tactical instructions. The Nigerian forward was eventually loaded onto a stretcher and taken from the field as fans at St James' Park applauded him off the field. He was replaced by star striker Chris Wood, who has scored 17 league goals this term. In a pleasing update, BBC Sport confirmed a 'groggy' Awoniyi was 'walking unaided' from the medical centre at St James' Park back to Forest's dressing room. Meanwhile, Nuno told talk SPORT after the game: “I think he broke his nose, but he’s walking around smiling. “He did an amazing job, he did really well today. ” Awoniyi's incident came near the end of what was a pulsating fourth round tie in regular time. League One outfit Exeter took a shock lead after just five minutes when Josh Magennis scored. Heavy favourites Forest equalised in the 10th minute through Ramon Sosa before Awoniyi nudged the visitors in front just before half-time. However, Magennis levelled the score in the 50th minute to send Exeter's supporters delirious. Unfortunately the hosts were reduced to ten men in the 87th minute after Ed Turns raised his studs in a challenge gone wrong on Morgan Gibbs-White. Despite the extra man, Forest were unable to find a winner in regular time. Remarkably, the Grecians held out wave after wave of Forest attacks in extra time too, with the Premier League side taking 31 shots in total. But there was nothing the underdogs could do when it came to penalties as their FA Cup run was brought to a halt. © 2025 talk SPORT Limited
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