Nottingham Forest seem set to receive some compensation from FIFA for the injury suffered by Cheikhou Kouyaté while representing Senegal at the World Cup.
The summer signing started the Lions of Teranga's opening match of the tournament against their Group A opponents, the Netherlands, on the competition's first full day of football. He was, however, stretchered off in the 73rd minute of the game following treatment after colliding with Barcelona's Frenkie de Jong during the 2-0 defeat.
Senegal manager Aliou Cisse had “hoped” the 32-year-old would recover in time to face the hosts Qatar four days later, in his team’s second group clash, after it was suggested the injury sustained was a twisted ankle. Kouyaté would, though, not feature again for the national team before they were eliminated by England at the round of 16 stage.
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It had been unclear as to when the player could return to action, but the player is now facing an extended period out of action, potentially as long as two months, with a torn hamstring. Forest are understood to be “extremely frustrated” and ultimately unhappy with the Senegalese Football Federation over their treatment and what they consider to be a poor diagnosis and subsequent management of the midfielder.
Head coach Steve Cooper offered an update from the Reds' winter training camp in Greece. “He is still going through some more scans to determine the real extent of it," the Reds boss said ahead of their friendly against Olympiacos, "but he isn’t going to be back soon.”
Forest may now turn to FIFA for financial recompense. As part of the FIFA Club Protection Programme, the organisation can provide compensation to a club if their player is injured during an official FIFA game.
This compensation does not kick in until the player is ruled out for more than four weeks, though. Kouyaté's injury happened on November 21, meaning Forest could claim compensation as soon as the start of next week.
Just how much the club gets is calculated based on the player’s contract - Kouyaté signed a two-year deal during the summer - and salary with the club, but there is a limit of £6.5 million per year, which equates to around £17,748 per day. That money is paid to the club for a maximum of a year up until the player is either back in full training or can feature in games again.
How big a blow will Kouyaté's extended absence be? Tell us in the comments...
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