Forest signs Omobamidele as Cooper calls for fair officiating against Chelsea

Nottingham Forest is delighted to announce the signing of Republic of Ireland international Andrew Omobamidele from Norwich City.

The defender has signed a five-year deal which keeps him at The City Ground until at least the summer of 2028.

Regarded as one of the brightest prospects in the EFL, Omobamidele arrives having progressed through the ranks at Norwich having joined from Leixlip United in 2019.

The 21-year-old made his professional debut in the Sky Bet Championship back in January 2021, the same year in which Norwich won the league title under Daniel Farke.

Omobamidele featured five times in the Premier League the following season, scoring his first top-flight goal against Leeds United in October 2021.

The central defender made his full international debut for Republic of Ireland in September 2021 and has since played a further five times for his country.

Meanwhile, Forest manager Steve Cooper calls for 'strong' performances from officials ahead of clash against Chelsea following anger at decisions made in defeat to Manchester United

Nottingham Forest boss Steve Cooper has called for ‘strong’ performances at Chelsea on Saturday with the club still furious with the officials’ displays in their defeat at Manchester United last weekend.

Cooper’s men were beaten 3-2 at Old Trafford after racing into a 2-0 lead but were bitterly disappointed at Joe Worrall’s sending-off and the fact United were awarded a penalty when Marcus Rashford tangled with Danilo.

‘This is another tough away game in a big stadium in terms of standing up and being strong,’ said Cooper ahead of his team’s trip to Stamford Bridge. ‘That's everyone on the pitch. Everybody.

‘So it'll be interesting to see how that goes, especially after what happened last weekend.

 ‘People have looked at our run of away games against the top teams in the league. There's another on Saturday and I want everyone on the pitch to be of the right, strong mentality.’

Though he did not mention the officials by name, Forest officials have noted that Tim Robinson – the man in the middle on Saturday – has taken charge of only a handful of Premier League fixtures. Forest submitted a formal complaint to the