Nottingham Forest coach Nuno Espirito Santo defended Evangelos Marinakis' "frustration" after a fierce attack on Sunday's 2-2 Premier League match against Leicester City.

After a match, it was the first time in 29 years that the Forest's position in Europe was blocked, but also lost the victory in the Champions League qualifying match, a noticeably thrilling Marinakis demonstrated against Nuno on the court.

Former Manchester United defender Gary Neville has been called a "scandal" in Sky Sports Review.

But Nuno said Marinakis' actions were understandable, explaining that what caused the anger was the failure to replace Taiwan Awoniyi. Forest made the final replacement shortly after Awoniyi clashed with the post, with 10 minutes left, and the injured forward then worked to make an impact.

"It's due to the situation," Nuno said. "I'm confused about the situation (Awoniyi).

“It’s frustrating to play 10 minutes with a player who has so much confidence and is aggressive.

“We made the submarine and then played with one person. It caused frustration, which was obvious.

"Football is emotion. It's hard to control, especially when we have so many expectations today."

After Facundo Buonanotte hit Leicester already associated with it, Forest ranked third in most fairy tale sports and seventh in the Premier League.

However, the club is only two games behind fifth Chelsea and hosted two games in West London on the final day of the season.

Neville slammed Forest owners ahead of Liverpool's match against Arsenal.

"I think what the Forest Boss just did on the ground in the city is absolutely a scandal," he said. "If I were Nuno, I would have a very strong word with him because it was a scandal."

"You just played in a European game. It's definitely a joke on where that club has been on the court in front of the club's fans."

Marinakis also owns Olympiacos on the Greek side, and recently placed his forest ownership in a blind trust to comply with the European Union's regulations.