Head coach Sabri Lamouchi says Rafa Mir was left out of Nottingham Forest's matchday squad on Saturday simply through personal choice.
Lamouchi made four changes to his starting XI for the defeat at Huddersfield Town, though top scorer Lewis Grabban retained his place up front.
With Mir left off the bench, it meant there was no recognised striker as back-up to Grabban. But the Reds manager confirmed there was no injury problem for the Wolverhampton Wanderers loanee.
“No injury, it was just my choice. Just my choice,” Lamouchi said of Mir’s absence.
The weekend’s game did, however, see a return for midfielder Samba Sow.
The summer signing was back in the first team after recovering from a hamstring problem which had kept him sidelined since October.
He played 68 minutes against the Terriers before being substituted, with Lamouchi eager not to take any risks - particularly as Sow had picked up a yellow card in what proved to be a tempestuous clash.
“It was good to have him back. It’s good for him and good for the team, it gives us more options,” said the Frenchman.
“It was not bad; a good performance from him.
“We took him off just because after a long time out, we didn’t want to take more of a risk.
“And him and (Ben) Watson, after they both had yellow cards and the game was becoming a little bit crazy, I didn’t want to take a risk.”
