Antoine Semenyo adds to Forest’s woes following Danilo’s horror injury | Premier League

Nottingham Forest have installed two chunky 3D stars outside the Peter Taylor Stand for the players to walk through on arrival, the kind that would be at home on the set of a teatime television game show, but their season began without a conveyor-belt prize, a family saloon or a trip to the Caribbean. Instead there was lingering frustration at Antoine Semenyo cancelling out Chris Wood’s first-half strike late on and major concern for Danilo, who was carried off on a stretcher after a seemingly innocuous collision with the Bournemouth goalscorer.

Last season this fixture, Nuno Espírito Santo’s first in charge of Forest, was certainly eventful, mired in controversy after a farcical first-half red card for Willy Boly. It was a decision that prompted a formal complaint from Forest against PGMOL, which in effect set wheels in motion for the former referee Mark Clattenburg’s much-debated arrival. There were five second-half goals, with Wood on the scoresheet for Forest and Dominic Solanke scoring a fine hat-trick, the winner a superb header in the fourth minute of stoppage time. This time VAR was in their favour, ruling out Dango Ouattara’s equaliser with Lewis Cook offside.

With Solanke, who scored 19 league goals last season, sold to Tottenham in a deal that could be worth £65m, Bournemouth hope they have another prolific forward in Evanilson, a £40m club-record signing from Porto. The striker, who made his Brazil debut in June and played in the Champions League round of 16 last season, was not registered in time to feature and instead flew home to collect things after successfully obtaining a visa. The 19-year-old Dean Huijsen, however, signed from Juventus last month and shone on his debut at centre-back.

With Evanilson absent and none of Forest’s six summer signings starting (Elliot Anderson arrived off the bench), this game always threatened to be about the players not on the pitch. It felt that way even more when Danilo departed the pitch on a stretcher, after six minutes of treatment. At first glance the Forest midfielder’s collision with Semenyo in the seventh minute appeared innocuous but he landed awkwardly and is thought to have suffered a serious injury. The referee, Michael Oliver, whistled hurriedly for Forest medical staff to attend to Danilo and stewards followed with Forest-branded sheets to provide a screen of privacy around the player.

It was not a game loaded on quality and from a Bournemouth perspective the Forest goal made painful viewing, though it did not stop Andoni Iraola marching to the away dugout to get a second look. Adam Smith’s wild clearance cannoned into the path of Ryan Yates, who replaced Danilo, and his shot was only parried by Neto, the Bournemouth captain who lost his place towards the end of last season. The ball fell straight to Wood who followed in to feast on the rebound. On the hour mark Neto repelled a powerful header as Boly tried to double Forest’s lead, towering above Ouattara to meet Callum Hudson-Odoi’s corner.

Luis Sinisterra, who signed permanently from Leeds this summer, forced Matz Sels into an alert save after Neto repelled a Hudson-Odoi strike at the other end and Cook went close with 15 minutes of normal time to run, his wicked shot bouncing narrowly wide. But it was Semenyo, who sent a shot wide soon after the restart, who levelled. The substitutes Justin Kluivert and Ryan Christie combined down the left and the latter’s cross lured Harry Toffolo into a panicked clearance, which whacked Murillo. Semenyo seized on the loose ball and found the net.