Nottingham Forest’s appeal against their four-point deduction for breaching profit and sustainability rules will be heard today.
The appeal itself is expected to be wrapped up on Wednesday, although the final outcome may not be until next month – yet well before the Premier League’s backstop date of 24 May.
Sitting a point above the relegation zone, following Sunday’s 2-0 defeat at Everton, the appeal will have ramifications in the fight for survival, regardless of the decision.
The controversy surrounding the club’s statement over the integrity of Stuart Attwell and their demands for the officials’ audio to be released from the Goodison Park loss – where Forest had three penalty claims rejected – has allowed this to arrive with little fanfare.
Forest themselves remain stoic in the face of an issue which has lingered for months. There has been little talk of it around the training ground, even if boss Nuno Espirito Santo admitted last week the players remained annoyed at losing four hard-earned points.
The talk is about football and how Forest feel they deserve more points from their performances, rather than about the ones stripped from them or what could have been.
There is an acceptance the appeal is out of their control but there is far from a cloud hanging over the City Ground. There is no moping.
Profit and sustainability is the elephant in the room and there is little escaping it with two appeals, for Forest and Everton, to be heard before the end of the season.
The PSR axe could fall for several clubs in the not-too-distant future, with Leicester having been charged over alleged breaches already, and talk about financial rule breaking could become as regular as VAR complaints.
For now, Forest remain positive. That positivity will only increase with a shock win over Manchester City on Sunday.