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Nottingham Forest were denied an opening goal in controversial circumstances in their Premier League match with Tottenham. After absorbing some pressure from Spurs in the second half at the City Ground, Forest thought they had forced an opener in the 66th minute when Neco Williams bundled home after Sandro Tonali had failed to clear Morgan Gibbs-White’s goalbound shot. Williams, who was sliding forwards, was on the line and protecting his face as Tonali had a second attempt at clearing the ball, but the Wales international got there first. #NFOTOT – 67’ VAR OVERTURN VAR checked the referee’s call of goal to Nottingham Forest – and determined that Williams handled the ball immediately before scoring and recommended that the goal was disallowed. REF: “After review, the ball touches the hand of Nottingham Forest… — Premier League Match Centre (@PLMatchCentre) September 5, 2026 However, after a lengthy dissection of footage, VAR Peter Bankes ruled that the ball went over the line after hitting Williams’ arm and Spurs had a reprieve. A statement from the Premier League read: “VAR checked the referee’s call of goal to Nottingham Forest – and determined that Williams handled the ball immediately before scoring and recommended that the goal was disallowed. “REF: “After review, the ball touches the hand of Nottingham Forest No.3 before the goal is scored. The final decision is a direct free-kick for Spurs”.”