Oli McBurnie stamp video: did Sheffield United player stamp on Nottingham Forest fan - what he said on Twitter

Hundreds of Nottingham Forest fans rushed onto the pitch to celebrate the club’s penalty shoot-out victory over Sheffield United in the second leg of their Championship play-off semi-final, but the celebrations were marred by controversy.

A 31-year-old Forest fan has been charged with assault by police probing an alleged on-pitch attack on Sheffield United’s Billy Sharp.

And now, the Football Association is looking into video footage of Sheffield United’s Oli McBurnie that appears to show him stamp on a Nottingham Forest fan.

A video circulating on social media shows McBurnie, sidelined through injury, tangling with a supporter who had fallen to the ground.

But what exactly happened?

Here is everything you need to know.

What happened?

The Football Association told the PA news agency it was aware of the video and was investigating, while Nottinghamshire Police said they were also looking into it.

Forest fans had surged onto the pitch to celebrate their team’s penalty shootout victory, a win that has secured a play-off final against Huddersfield on Sunday 29 May at Wembley, and the chance of a return to the Premier League for the first time since 1999.

Inspector Andy Wright said: “We have been made aware of a video circulating on social media showing a possible altercation where a Forest fan can be seen on the ground following the play-off semi-final.

“We have now started an investigation into this incident.

“The person in question has not yet reported the incident, but we would urge them to come forward along with any other persons who may have witnessed the incident or have video footage so we can establish the full circumstances.

“We would particularly appeal to the owner of the original footage to make contact.”

Neither Sheffield United or Forest have commented on the incident.

What has McBurnie said?

McBurnie responded to a Sheffield United fan’s tweet on Wednesday (18 May) night, which said: “Wish that video was in full context – looks more like he was trying to step over him with one bad leg! Could be wrong!”

McBurnie replied to the tweet with a "100" emoji, implying that he completely agreed with the original poster, but added nothing further.

In April, it was reported that the striker would be out for "months" with a foot injury, according to manager Paul Heckinbottom.

The 25-year-old Scotland international suffered the injury in a home defeat to Reading.

“He’s got ligament damage and some fractures. We’ll look further into it to see if it needs surgery,” Heckingbottom told BBC Radio Sheffield.

“It’s going to be a matter of months not weeks. It’s a blow for him and a blow for us.”

McBurnie also ‘liked’ a tweet posted by Sheffield United’s assistant kit man Adam Geelan, which said: “Fan illegally enters the pitch provokes and tries to push Rian (Brewster) he defends himself and the kid falls on Oli’s broken foot can clearly see there’s no stamp, ridiculous post especially when stewards and police were stood there watching it happen and was left to ourselves to defend.”

What does it mean for clubs?

In light of recent events, the EFL has said partial and even full stadium closures could be imposed on clubs next season as the league seeks to crack down on pitch invasions and other fan disorder.

The league, along with the players’ union, the Professional Footballers’ Association and Nottingham Forest, condemned the BIlly Sharp incident, and said it will strive to tighten its deterrents against fan misbehaviour over the summer.

Addressing the pitch invasion at Forest and similar scenes at other play-off and end-of-season fixtures, the EFL said: “We recognise that this lawlessness is being conducted by a small minority of individuals and that the majority of people attending matches are a credit to their club.

“However, it is not acceptable for supporters to enter the field of play at any time given the EFL’s objective is to ensure our matches remain a safe and welcoming one for all.”

It is understood that all alternatives will be considered, including ordering teams to play matches behind closed doors.

The UKFPU released figures earlier this year showing a 36% increase in reported fan disorder incidents in the first half of the 2021-22 season, compared to the same period in 2019-20.