Nottingham Forest supporting Gustavo Scarpa after Brazilian loses money in scam

By Jonathan Veal, PA

Nottingham Forest are supporting midfielder Gustavo Scarpa after he lost almost £1million in a cryptocurrency scam.

Forest allowed their January signing to return to Brazil to deal with the matter, where returns on his signficant investment were not paid.

Scarpa, who moved to England in November after his contract at Palmeiras ran out, has appeared in court in his homeland after trying to regain his money, according to reports in Brazil.

Boss Steve Cooper has revealed the matter is why Scarpa has been left out of recent games and that Forest are giving the Brazilian their full support.

“I can tell you that he has had some personal issues to sort out and we are giving him our support, which is inclusive of allowing him to travel back (to Brazil),” Cooper said.

“I don’t really think it’s right to go into the ins and outs of the situation. I don’t think I’m allowed to either, but I wouldn’t want to anyway because it’s a personal situation.

“First and foremost that’s where I’m at with it. We’re supporting Gustavo in terms of what he’s going through and of course it affects football performance and availability, and all that sort of stuff.

“Those things go hand in hand, of course. We want him settled in his mind and sorting out the situation.

“It’s an unfortunate situation and he’s got our full support with it. Hopefully he can get it sorted out and then focus on his availability for us.”