Taiwo Awoniyi received the welcome from a hero on his return to the city area while he saw the Nottingham Forest offer for a return of the Champions League.
Awoniyi was back for the first time in the forest stadium since his horror injury that had seen him in a coma for abdominal surgery.
The forest exit was paraded on the pre-match of the play area where fans in the stadium gave him a huge cheers to welcome him back.
Awoniyi remains injured, but looked up while his teammates tried to secure a Champions League place against Chelsea.
The 27-year-old ran a belly injury against Leicester City earlier this month.
The Nigerian went under the knife last Monday and was then placed in an induced coma to regulate his heart rate and movement.
After a successful operation, Awoniyi is now back on his feet and good enough to be present at the enormous collision for European football.
Both Forest and Chelsea are fighting it next to Newcastle, Aston Villa and Manchester City for the three remaining Champions League spots in the Premier League on the last day.
Awoniyi wished his teammates happiness in a statement on social media last week.
It said: “This season was one of the hardest of my career, but because of all this I felt love.
“With the grace of God I am grateful to still be here, still fighting, still smiling and being good.
“Thanks to my teammates, coaches, employees and the entire forest family, seeing all of you during your visit to the hospital have lifted my mind more than being able to say words.
“I wish the boys the very best in these last two games, keep believing and keep pushing. I am completely with you and I can't wait to be back with the boys who do what I love.
“Thanks to my family, friends and football fans, for the support and to everyone at home in Nigeria who checked me in, thanked me and left left words, thanks.
“I see them. I feel them. And I wear them with me every day when I recover. Come on your red. “
Unfortunately for Awoniyi and his forest teammates they could not return a dream to the Champions League.
A 1-0 defeat against Chelsea meant that Forest could not end in the top five and instead resigned for seventh place.
But their excellent season will not be completely untaxed, because they will still return to Europe for the first time since 1996 – earning a place in the Conference League.