Issues at the top and bottom of the Premier League table will come to the fore on the weekend when relegation battlers Nottingham Forest host Champions League-chasing Manchester United in a 4:30pm BST kick-off on Sunday afternoon from the City Ground. Let’s take a look at the Nottingham Forest vs Manchester United betting tips, trends, and analysis ahead of the big game.
Pressure Building on Cooper
There is no doubt that this game is a massive one for Nottingham Forest and their manager Steve Cooper. Only last week did the owner Evangelos Marinakis give Cooper the dreaded vote of confidence but also state that “results and performances must improve immediately”. Those comments led to the former Swansea head coach being dropped to 6/5 with Betfair to be the next Premier League manager sacked.
It feels like a bit of a stitch-up from Marinakis with the Greek businessman knowing full well that Forest face a difficult run of fixtures with Liverpool at home and Brighton away set to follow this tough home game against United. Still, Cooper remains in charge at Forest and the team are still without a win in their last 9 league matches leaving them down in 18th place in the table and inside the relegation zone on goal difference.
The current plight of the club means they are priced at 2/5 with Paddy Power to be relegated with only bottom-placed Southampton listed at shorter odds. It’s not all doom and gloom though. Forest’s record at home in the league is actually quite encouraging. It’s just 1 loss from the last 11 home league matches. In fact, they are ranked 12th in the home form table and they are available at 5/4 with William Hill to get something in this game. Brennan Johnson to score anytime at 17/5 with BetUK is also a tempting price.
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Injury Problems Plague ten Hag
It’s fair to say that I have a particular bone to pick with Manchester United’s players after the 2-2 draw with Sevilla in the Europa League on Thursday night. I predicted United to win to nil with less than 2.5 goals scored. It was all going so well until an own goal a piece from Tyrell Malacia and Harry Maguire in the last 6 minutes surrendered the two-goal lead.
In an additional blow, Erik ten Hag also witnessed injuries to centre back duo Raphael Varane and Lisandro Martinez. When you add those injuries to the one currently suffered by top scorer Marcus Rashford it’s becoming a bit of a problem for the Dutchman and his team. It is hoped that Luke Shaw will be fit to make a return which will ease the pain somewhat.
The Red Devils have shown an improvement in results on the domestic front. Back-to-back clean sheet wins over Brentford and Everton have seen the club consolidate their place in the top four. The team are now valued at 1/5 with BetVictor to qualify for next season’s Champions League so you feel the good times are returning to the red side of Manchester. The big question is who will score the goals in Rashford’s absence? Marcel Sabitzer grabbed 2 goals versus Sevilla and he’s 6/1 with William Hill to score anytime here. It’s also worth considering the likes of Anthony Martial and Bruno Fernandes who are 9/4 with Unibet and 3/1 with William Hill respectively.
Head-to-Head Meetings
There is a lot of history to this fixture with both teams experiencing their fair share of top-flight action down the years. However, recent records make for grim reading for Forest fans. The East Midlands club have lost each of the previous 9 meetings with United.
In fact, the last time Forest experienced the joy of victory over United at the City Ground was back on 18th March, 1992 in a 1-0 win. An unfashionable solitary goal from Nigel Clough was enough to separate the sides then and it’s been a barren spell ever since for the Tricky Trees on their own patch against United.
Nottingham Forest vs Manchester United Betting Tips
Recent encounters between these two clubs immediately makes you feel that this could be another potential nail in the coffin for Forest’s survival hopes. That being said, their home record in the league this season is solid and they’ve turned the City Ground into a bit of a fortress. Only Newcastle, Fulham, Bournemouth, and Tottenham have come away from this ground with a win in the league this season.
United do have their injury problems but Forest are also currently without key players such as Chris Wood, Willy Boly, Dean Henderson, and Cheikhou Kouyate but ten Hag’s squad certainly boasts more strength in depth. It’s also key to remember that Forest have earned more points at home this season (21) than United have on their travels (20). This is the part of the season where we do start to see some odd results and I wouldn’t be surprised if we see one here. I think Forest could be worth backing as a double chance bet here with United’s defensive frailties a concern for me.
Nottingham Forest Double Chance @ 5/4 with William Hill
Anytime Scorer: Brennan Johnson @ 17/5 with BetUK
All odds are correct at the time of writing.
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