Nottingham Forest will finish the season without Callum Hudson-Odoi, after surgery on a right quadriceps injury ruled the winger out of their Premier League run-in and Europa League campaign, creating a significant absence for Vitor Pereira during a crucial stage.

Hudson-Odoi sustained the injury during Forest’s 1-0 victory over Porto in the second leg of their Europa League quarter-final, having entered at half-time, and the issue then kept the 25-year-old out of the 4-1 league win against relegation rivals Burnley.

Forest detailed the situation in a social media announcement on April 21, 2026, stating: “Nottingham Forest can confirm that Callum Hudson-Odoi suffered an injury to his right quadriceps muscle in our Europa League Quarter Final fixture against FC Porto last Thursday, Forest said in a statement on social media on Tuesday. Following further specialist consultation, the winger has undergone surgery today and will commence his rehabilitation with our medical staff immediately. Callum is expected to return to full training during the pre-season period, and everyone at the Club wishes him a speedy recovery.”

The club confirmed that surgery took place on April 21, 2026, and Hudson-Odoi will now work with Nottingham Forest’s medical staff, with the expectation of rejoining full training during pre-season, leaving Pereira to adjust attacking plans for the remaining fixtures.

Nottingham Forest sit 16th in the Premier League, six points clear of the bottom three, and still face Sunderland, Chelsea, Newcastle United, Manchester United and Bournemouth in their last five league matches, alongside a Europa League semi-final against Aston Villa starting on April 30.

Hudson-Odoi provided his own reaction on social media after the Nottingham Forest operation, writing: “Surgery was successful, but definitely not the way I wanted to end the season. But with God’s timing and plan, hopefully I’ll be back stronger and better than before.”

The winger’s absence is significant for Nottingham Forest, as only Morgan Gibbs-White with 15 goals and Igor Jesus with 14 have scored more than Hudson-Odoi’s six in all competitions, while Hudson-Odoi also supplied four assists across 43 appearances this season.

Beyond goals and assists, Hudson-Odoi created 72 chances, the highest figure in the Nottingham Forest squad, meaning Pereira now loses a primary source of creativity for both Premier League survival efforts and the Europa League semi-final meetings with Aston Villa.

Current probability models give Nottingham Forest a 95.6% chance of staying in the Premier League, while Tottenham stand at 58.2% and West Ham at 37% for relegation risk to the Championship, suggesting Forest’s position remains relatively strong despite losing Hudson-Odoi.

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With Callum Hudson-Odoi sidelined until pre-season, Nottingham Forest must rely on other attacking options to protect their six-point cushion, manage a demanding schedule and attempt to progress past Aston Villa in the Europa League while monitoring the rehabilitation of one of their most productive players.