Ivan Toney 'cheating' storm: Nottingham Forest lodge official complaint to Premier League over Brentford striker's controversial free-kick

Toney marked his return from an eight-month suspension by firing in a free-kick to equalise after Forest's early goal. It later emerged that the forward had moved the referee's vanishing spray and the ball forward before firing low into the net, with a number of fans on social media accusing him of "cheating".

Toney's goal has infuriated Forest, who have sent a letter of complaint to the Premier League and asked Howard Webb, the chief of Professional Games Match Officials Limited (PGMOL), for an explanation regarding why it was allowed to stand and was not checked and flagged by VAR, The Athletic reports.

Forest manager Nuno Espirito Santo was frustrated by the incident too, saying after the game: "That is a new one, it is the first time I have heard that one. Of course [I had issues]. Everyone in the room will have seen the ball displacement and the law is clear. Every goal must be checked. Every situation must be checked, when it leads to a goal."

He added: "We have to be more mature in that situation. You cannot allow the ball to be moved because it changed the position of the wall. Everyone thinks that it was a mistake, with the positioning of the wall. But it was a clear case of ball displacement. It was not only inches, it was almost a yard."

Forest will hope to have some clarity on the controversial situation as they prepare for next week's FA Cup clash against Bristol City, which is followed by a Premier League game against Arsenal. Toney and Brentford, meanwhile, face Tottenham on January 31 and then host Manchester City the following week.