Olofinjana is sued by Blackstock due to an injury at Nottingham Forest.
Dexter Blackstock, a striker for Nottingham Forest, is suing the High Court for damages after a tackle left him hurt for over a year.
He is suing Seyi Olofinjana and Cardiff City, the midfielder’s previous team, for damages related to a knee injury he sustained in a November 2010 match.
Blackstock, 27, says the midfielder was “negligent” and scored the game’s winning goal before being carted off.
The writ states that the sum is more than £50,000 but has not been made public.
Olofinjana, who is currently a Sheffield Wednesday player, challenged Blackstock “in a way that caused a reasonably foreseeable risk of injury” in the 88th minute of the Forest vs. Cardiff City game, which the Forest team won 2-0.
In addition to seeking damages for not being able to receive bonuses while he was injured, he has filed a writ seeking additional compensation in the event that his injury results in an early end to his career.
Olofinjana, 33, “played Mr. Blackstock rather than the ball” and “raised his foot” in the challenge, “forcefully striking” his opponent’s shin and calf and failing “to control his momentum,” according to Blackstock’s attorney Jonathan Crystal in the writ.
“The medical reports detail a significant chance that at some point in the future Mr Blackstock’s knee will deteriorate further or he will suffer further injury as a result of the existing condition of his knee which will impact upon his ability to play professional football.”
After recovering from an injury in December 2011, Blackstock—a former player for Southampton and QPR—made 24 appearances for Forest in the 2011–12 campaign.
Prior to going on loan to Leeds in October, he only made three appearances for Forest this season after playing in 39 games for them in 2012–13.
After missing the entire season due to a knee injury, the former England youth international made four starts for Brian McDermott’s team before returning to Forest in December.
