Nottingham Forest docked four points for breach of Premier League rules
Nottingham Forest have been docked four points for a breach of the Premier League's rules on profitability and sustainability.
The deduction puts the team in the relegation zone, in eighteenth place, one point from safety with nine games to go, having narrowly avoided the drop last year.
Forest were charged in January after confirming they were in breach of the rules for the assessment period ending 2022-23.
The six-point deduction Everton received for similar breaches - reduced from 10 on appeal - is regarded by some as a benchmark punishment. Everton also face a second charge which has not yet been adjudicated on.
Forest said they are "extremely disappointed" with the decision, which "raises issues of concern for all aspirant clubs".
"We were extremely dismayed by the tone and content of the Premier League's submissions before the commission," a club statement read.
"After months of engagement with the Premier League, and exceptional cooperation throughout, this was unexpected and has harmed the trust and confidence we had in the Premier League."
A statement from the Premier League said: "Nottingham Forest was referred to an independent commission on 15 January, following an admission by the club that it had breached the relevant PSR threshold of £61m by £34.5m.
New Premier League rules
"The threshold was lower than £105m as the club spent two seasons of the assessment period in the EFL Championship.
"The case was heard in accordance with new Premier League Rules, which provide an expedited timetable for PSR cases to be resolved in the same season the complaint is issued.
"The independent commission determined the sanction following a two-day hearing this month, at which the club had the opportunity to detail a range of mitigating factors.
"The commission found that the club had demonstrated "exceptional cooperation" in its dealings with the Premier League throughout the process."
The ruling shows the Premier League pushed for a six-point sanction - with eight points as an initial figure to account for Forest's excess over the threshold being 77% greater than Everton's, but discounted by two points to reflect Forest's early plea and co-operation.
Forest argued that any points deduction should be "minimal", because they turned down several lower offers for striker Brennan Johnson last summer, before eventually accepting a bid of £47m from Tottenham, meaning their PSR breach was a "near miss".
'Sailing close to the wind'
With all the money earned from selling Johnson, an academy product, going down as a profit, the club argued their approach was designed to make them more sustainable, but the commissioners did not accept this reasoning.
It said in its ruling: "When a club like Forest took the risk of effectively ignoring the PSR warning from its finance director before the January window in 2023, and rather than looking to sell players, it added players to its squad, ultimately leaving itself with just two weeks to sell Player A (Brennan Johnson) in the summer 2023 window, such risk-taking and 'sailing close to the wind' needs a proportionate sanction to maintain the integrity of the Premier League."
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Calling the breach "serious", the commission said in its conclusion the sanction was not meant to punish Forest "so much as it is to be fair to the other clubs; to give the public confidence that when a club invests as Forest did to compete in the Premier League, it still needs to comply with the PSR threshold for losses."
The club have yet to say whether or not they would appeal.
Under the 'standard directions' for dealing with PSR complaints, any appeal outcome must be known prior to 1 June, when promoted clubs receive their Premier League 'shares', which effectively confirms their place in the league.
The punishment comes two days after Forest were held to a 1-1 draw by fellow strugglers Luton Town, who scored a late equaliser.
