Nottingham Forest manager Chris Hughton has suggested that Sammy Ameobi will be fit enough to make his return to the side next time out against Huddersfield Town despite missing the goalless draw at Bristol City.

Ameobi was a notable absentee from the starting line-up at Ashton Gate, with the winger having been key for Forest in their successive wins against Cardiff City and QPR over the Easter period. The 28-year-old had just been starting to come into something like his best form and was proving to be a real threat and that was lacked in his absence with Anthony Knockaert not as effective.

As a result, Forest were forced to settle for a goalless draw that does at least extend their unbeaten run and it will have informed Hughton over how important Ameobi is to the side. The Reds will be hoping that he can come back to action now and stay fully fit for the remaining matches of the Championship campaign as they push for maybe even a top-half finish.

Speaking to Nottinghamshire Live, Hughton revealed that Ameobi had missed out on the game due to an ankle injury that he suffered in training and that he was not risked for the Bristol City game but should be ready to return to action against Huddersfield.

He said: "Sammy tweaked his ankle in training. It’s very minimal.

“We had to make a decision on whether to play him or not.

"At this stage of the season, I didn’t think it was worth risking him in case he ended up making it worse.

“We fully expect him to train next week and to be available for next Saturday.”

The verdict

This is a major positive for Forest who would not have been wanting to be without Ameobi for a prolonged period with the winger just about getting into his best form for them in recent weeks. The Reds do not have anyone to come in and replace who can add the same sort of dynamism to their attack down his side and that was shown by Knockeart against Bristol City.

You would expect Ameobi to come straight back into the side against Huddersfield if he is fully fit and he could cause a lot of problems for the Terriers. That would give the Reds a good chance of extending their positive run of form and keep them heading in to the right direction in the Championship table.

Ameobi has managed to enjoy a real upturn in form recently and he needs to continue that level of performance on a consistent basis despite having had this break through injury. You suspect he will definitely be able t return because Hughton would not at this stage in the campaign want to risk anything happening to him that could affect next term.