FA fines Forest manager Nuno and defender Williams

Nottingham Forest manager Nuno Espirito Santo and defender Neco Williams have been fined for misconduct by the Football Association after last season's defeat by Everton.

Nuno has been fined £40,000 and handed a one-game touchline ban, which is suspended until 31 May 2026, while Williams has been fined £24,000.

It follows their comments after Forest had three penalty decisions go against them in their 2-0 Premier League defeat at Goodison Park in April.

Nuno said the officials had "bad" games while Williams told Sky Sports: "Every single week this happens now. We are getting decisions against us, I don’t know why. Is it because we are a lower, bottom half of the table team?"

Both men have also been warned about their future conduct.

"Nuno Espirito Santo and Neco Williams have been sanctioned for misconduct in relation to media comments made after their game against Everton in the Premier League on Sunday, 21 April 2024," the FA said in a statement.

"It was alleged that the manager and player's comments constitute improper conduct in that they implied bias and/or questioned the integrity of the match officials and/or bring the game into disrepute."

A decision by the FA against the club is still to be made, however, after Forest released an angry statement on X - seen over 45m times - just minutes after the final whistle.

The club claimed they told referees body the Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL) that the game's video assistant referee (VAR) Stuart Attwell was allegedly a fan of relegation rivals Luton.

The fallout from the game also led to former Premier League referee Mark Clattenburg leaving his role as a referee analyst at Forest.

Clattenburg, in the Mail on Sunday, called the decisions a "joke" and said Forest were "feeling victimised".