'I heard' - Former Arsenal star thinks Nottingham Forest star could be ruled out vs Newcastle United

Paul Merson has revealed Morgan Gibbs-White could be out against Newcastle United this evening.

Nottingham Forest supporters’ hearts were in their mouths in midweek as the midfielder limped around the City Ground turf. Nuno Espirito Santo’s men were forced into an FA Cup replay - which they won against Bristol City on penalties.

That could have come at a cost though should they be without their talisman. Gibbs-White has been instrumental for Forest since arriving from Wolverhampton Wanderers in 2022.

His performance at St James’ Park, in particular, turned heads as he helped the Tricky Trees earn an unlikely 3-1 win over Newcastle. Reports a month later linked Gibbs-White with a Tyneside move amid Forest’s FFP/PSR struggles.

At present, the 24-year-old’s focus remains on keeping Forest in the Premier League, with Nuno’s side sitting two points above the drop zone. Losing him for any amount of time would deal a crushing blow to their survival hopes.

Newcastle fans will already be relieved to learn Chris Wood’s absence with a hamstring injury. The former Toon striker bagged a hat-trick to stun Eddie Howe’s men in the reverse fixtures.

But now they could be set for another boost as ex-Arsenal chief Merson - who also predicts a 2-1 away win - hinted at Gibbs-White also missing out. He wrote in his SportsKeeda column: “Both these teams need to start winning games soon. I heard Morgan Gibbs-White might be injured but, strangely enough, he stayed on the whole time against Bristol City so his involvement in the game could decide the outcome.

“Newcastle are becoming a bit like Brighton in the sense that they are hard to predict. But I think they'll just nick this one on their travels.”