Forest fans have been reacting to a post by the club on Twitter, which confirms that former player Justin Fashanu has entered the National Football Museum’s Hall of Fame.
The late Fashanu remains the only professional footballer in England to come out as gay, as well as being the first black footballer to command a £1 million transfer fee with his move from Norwich City to Nottingham Forest.
On what would have been his 59th birthday, Amal Fashanu, Justin’s niece, collected the National Football Museum’s Hall of Fame Award on behalf of her uncle, stating:
“One of my favourite memories of Uncle Justin was his playful, cheeky character. He was so fun to be around and he would have been the life and soul of this event. Justin Fashanu was talented, smart, well-loved and charming. It warms my heart to witness his legacy being honoured more than 21 years after his untimely passing.”
Upon hearing the news, Forest fans took to social media, celebrating the life and career of Fashanu, with many calling for football to use Fashanu’s legacy as a cause for a change to attitudes concerning people’s sexualities within the game.
? Former #NFFC striker Justin Fashanu has been inducted into the @FootballMuseum Hall of Fame today.
The former Forest man would have been 59 today.
— Nottingham Forest (@NFFC) February 19, 2020
A brave man in a world that didn’t really understand.
— Chilwell Red (@mikeyboy19682) February 19, 2020
A huge loss to football.
— Brendan Collis (@BrenCollisOPIT) February 19, 2020
In all honesty, you could say doesn’t understand.
— Beni Hana (@Raggarex) February 20, 2020
An absolute icon of the game. Justin Fashanu I salute you.
— Forests_Finest (@nffc20192020) February 19, 2020
A man struggling to find himself. Well done football museum
— Robbosleftpeg (@Robbosleftpeg) February 19, 2020
Rightly so, he would be lauded nowadays for his stance, RIP Justin, God Bless ??
— Martin ? ? ? ? (@Devon_Dolphin) February 19, 2020
Had the pleasure of knowing him, lovely guy.
— KnightOfNi (@JDMMat1) February 19, 2020
What do we think?
Justin Fashanu was a trailblazer in many aspects of his life.
Since his death, his niece Amal has set up the Justin Fashanu Foundation, which seeks to support those suffering from mental health issues in football and to raise the participation of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transexual people in football, among many other important issues.
However, Fashanu’s induction to the National Football Museum’s Hall of Fame is not solely because of the rights he fought for, or the causes he stood for, but also because he was a fantastically talented footballer, something that is too often forgotten.