Nottingham Forest manager Nuno Espirito Santo has spoken at his latest press conference as he prepares to face Aston Villa at Villa Park this weekend.

Both sides are major contenders for European spots this season, whilst Villa hosts remain capable of bringing home an astounding Champions League and FA Cup double.

Forest will look to retain their top four position which will be tough as Nuno first revealed that his side will be without one of their top defenders Ola Aina.

The full-back was forced off in the 40th minute of Tuesday night’s 1-0 win over Manchester United at the City Ground and Nuno admitted that he is to be sidelined “for a while” with a calf issue.

“He has had the scan and he is going to be out for a while. It is a calf problem. He is not going to be available.

“It is a big blow. We will miss his quality, his talent and the routines we already have with his teammates. We are going to miss him.

“Some players take more time, others less. We will assess him. He will definitely be out for Villa and for Everton he will be a doubt. Beyond that we will assess him. I am positive that we will see him again (before the end of the season)."

Eric da Silva Moreira is also injured which does not help Forest’s defensive options that are already limited this season.

“He got injured with the Germany Under-19 national team, in their second game. He has been out for two or three weeks now,” Nuno said of Moreira.

“He is getting back in the group now with individual sessions. For this game, it is also going to be very tight for him maybe.

“With Ola out, we are going to try to find solutions to the problems we have. The absence of Ola is a big one and we are going to miss him but we have to find solutions.”