The midfielder was set to join Blackburn on loan on deadline day but the paperwork was only submitted ten minutes after the transfer window closed at 11pm on 31st January.
Blackburn have made an appeal to green-light the deal and the EFL board met last week to discuss it.
Now Blackburn are taking the matter to an arbitration panel as they look to push through the capture of O’Brien.
And it has been claimed that Nottingham Forest are now exploring whether they can loan him to the MLS in the coming weeks.
The transfer window in MLS will remain open until April and Nottingham Forest are looking at the possibility of finding an American club for O’Brien.
The midfielder is currently stuck in a state of limbo.
And it remains to be seen where he will be playing his football in the coming months, with the picture set to become clearer soon.
