The Football Association has launched an investigation after Crystal Palace fans displayed a controversial banner targeting Nottingham Forest owner Evangelos Marinakis during Sunday’s 1-1 draw at Selhurst Park.
The banner showed Marinakis holding a gun to the head of midfielder Morgan Gibbs-White, alongside wording that read: “Mr Marinakis is not involved in blackmail, match-fixing, drug trafficking or corruption!”
Forest sources have expressed deep frustration that the flag was allowed inside the stadium, according to the BBC, branding it “hugely disappointing” and inflammatory.
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Marinakis has always strongly denied any allegations of wrongdoing connected to such accusations.
The Football Association has launched an investigation after Crystal Palace fans displayed a controversial banner targeting Nottingham Forest owner Evangelos Marinakis during Sunday’s 1-1 draw at Selhurst Park
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The FA is now reviewing the incident and will determine whether Palace should face disciplinary action.
Current regulations prohibit offensive, defamatory or politically motivated slogans on banners and flags inside football grounds.
The incident threatens to intensify already strained relations between Palace and Forest following a controversial summer off the pitch.
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Palace were stripped of their Europa League spot due to UEFA’s multi-club ownership rules, with Forest handed their place in Europe’s second-tier competition.
At the time, Palace chairman Steve Parish labelled the decision “the biggest injustice in the history of football.”
That background has made Sunday’s events particularly sensitive.
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Morgan Gibbs-White came close to leaving Nottingham Forest for Tottenham earlier this summer
| GETTYThose close to Forest’s hierarchy view the banner as not only defamatory but also xenophobic in tone.
Privately, there is dismay at what they see as a lack of public condemnation from Palace or the club’s ownership group, which includes Parish, Woody Johnson, Josh Harris and David Blitzer.
The FA probe will now look at how the banner was permitted to enter Selhurst Park, with the potential for sanctions depending on its findings.
The game itself ended in a 1-1 draw but was overshadowed by the off-field controversy.
Gibbs-White, who was depicted on the banner, had been heavily linked with a move away from Forest earlier this summer.
Tottenham Hotspur appeared close to triggering his £60m release clause, but the England international ultimately signed a new deal to remain at the City Ground, committing his future in an interview given alongside Marinakis.
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Nottingham Forest earned a draw against Crystal Palace in Sunday's Premier League clash at Selhurst Park
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Forest insiders believe the banner will only fuel animosity between the two clubs as the fallout from UEFA’s ruling continues.
Palace are next in action against Fredrikstad in the second leg of their UEFA Conference League play-off on Thursday (5pm).
As for Forest, their next match is against West Ham on Sunday (2pm).