Ola Aina has said Nottingham Forest are not bothered about losing the appeal against their four-point deduction for breaking financial rules.
Forest were charged in January after breaching Profitability and Sustainability Rules (PSR) by £34.5m above their permitted threshold of £61m for the assessment period ending 2022/23.
Nuno Espirito Santo’s side were the second Premier League club to be penalized for PSR breaches after Everton lost 10 points in November, which was reduced to six on appeal.
The Reds occupy 17th position, just three points clear of the relegation zone with two games remaining.
Aina however said that the Forest squad is firmly focused on maintaining their top-flight status.
“I’m not really bothered about it to be honest. We’ve always been focussing on what we want to do, which is going into games and getting points anyway,” Aina told BBC Sport.
“You could say it’s helpful [getting clarity before the end of the season] but the energy around the club was like it has been forgotten about anyway, especially among the players. We didn’t really talk or think about it – we were just thinking about getting points as we normally would.
“It feels good that it’s in our hands. We can take control of that. I don’t think [it is nervy], I think the boys enjoy the task. I really enjoy going out there and having to get something. That’s the joy of football.
“It would be fantastic [to secure Premier League survival] and I do think we’ll do it. It will be fantastic to have that bit of relief, whether that’s this week or next week.”
Forest will face Aina’s former club Chelsea at the City Ground in their next game on Saturday.