November 23rd 2024.
This season, Chris Wood has been on fire for Nottingham Forest. He has consistently been their top scorer and has already scored an impressive 14 goals for his club and country. So when Nottingham Forest announced their starting line-up for the match against Arsenal, it came as a shock to many that Wood was not in the starting eleven. Instead, he was listed among the substitutes.
Many speculated that this decision was due to Wood's recent international duty with New Zealand. He had played in two World Cup qualifiers against Samoa and Vanuatu during the break and with the amount of travel involved, it was understandable that the 32-year-old would need some rest. It was deemed best for him to start on the bench to avoid any potential jetlag affecting his performance.
Former Forest star Brian Laws weighed in on the surprise decision, acknowledging the impact of international travel on players. He stated, "Players have been called up internationally, and of course when they travel all over the world jetlag will be very much in the forefront of the manager's mind. Particularly for Wood who has been everywhere and anywhere. It's just ridiculous."
Nottingham Forest was also missing another key player, Morgan Gibbs-White, who was still recovering from injury. Nuno Espirito Santo, the Forest boss, confirmed, "He's not in the right moment. We've been taking care of him since the knock in the Chelsea game, he has been trying hard, but he's not in the position to do it today." It was clear that the team was prioritizing the well-being of their players, even if it meant sacrificing their presence on the field.
Laws further emphasized the importance of player welfare, "When you're on a plane for so long, jetlag will come in and catch you when you least expect it. Your body clock is all over the place and sometimes you can be unstable on your feet. I've been through that process myself and it can take you a couple of days to get back into the time zone. It's important that the player's well-being is looked after. I know we want the player on the pitch and the player wants to start the game, but as a manager, you have to take care of your players, and I think he's done that."
In the end, it was a tough decision for Nuno to leave out two key players, but it was clear that he had their best interests at heart. The well-being of the players should always come first, and in this case, it was the right call. Hopefully, Wood and Gibbs-White will be back in top form for Nottingham Forest's next match.
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