Sports activities Mole previews Sunday’s Premier League conflict between Nottingham Forest and Newcastle United, together with predictions, crew information and attainable lineups.
The Metropolis Floor is the venue for an interesting Premier League contest on Sunday afternoon, as high-flying Nottingham Forest pit their wits in opposition to Newcastle United.
Nuno Espirito Santo‘s crew hit West Ham United for 3 final weekend to surge into the highest three of the Premier League desk, whereas the Magpies put an enormous dent in Arsenal’s title aspirations.
Match preview
© Imago
The Difficult Timber have been pulling up timber after which some within the early portion of the Premier League season, out-performing all of Arsenal, Manchester United, Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur to nab the ultimate place on the rostrum after 10 matches.
After ending October with back-to-back triumphs over Leicester Metropolis and Crystal Palace, Forest ran a 10-man West Ham ragged in gameweek 10, the place Chris Wooden nodded in his eighth aim of the marketing campaign earlier than Callum Hudson-Odoi and Ola Aina offered the icing and cherry on high.
Trailing Liverpool by six factors and Manchester Metropolis by a mere 4 forward of this weekend’s motion, Forest’s begin to 2024-25 has been past their avid supporters’ wildest desires, as Santo works the magic that additionally received Wolverhampton Wanderers into Europe throughout his spell on the Molineux helm.
Moreover, with a mere three objectives conceded on the Metropolis Floor within the present marketing campaign, no Premier League crew boasts a greater residence defensive document than Santo’s crew, who’re aiming to win 4 top-flight video games working for the primary time since 1994-95.
That yr, the Difficult Timber did find yourself ending in third place within the desk – an especially optimistic omen if they will clip the Magpies’ wings this weekend – however Eddie Howe‘s males even have a spring of their step after the occasions of final weekend.
© Imago
Now celebrating three years within the Newcastle hotseat, Howe acquired one of the best kind of early anniversary current throughout final Saturday’s lunchtime battle with Arsenal, the place Alexander Isak met a pinpoint Anthony Gordon cross with a superb header to gun down the Gunners.
With Martin Odegaard helplessly watching on from the sidelines, Newcastle’s full-back younglings Tino Livramento and Lewis Corridor did a quantity on Gabriel Martinelli and Bukayo Saka; the latter’s reward was a first-ever call-up to the senior England crew.
The beating of Arsenal marked a second straight residence success for Newcastle after they dumped Chelsea out of the EFL Cup, and it has gone some strategy to serving to them reignite a push for Europe, as they lie eleventh within the standings with a one-point deficit to make as much as seventh-placed Tottenham Hotspur.
Nevertheless, Newcastle haven’t been capable of replicate their St James’ Park shows of their most up-to-date street battles, solely taking one level from their final three Premier League video games away from residence in opposition to Fulham, Everton and Chelsea, and they’re but to win a top-flight match by multiple aim this season.
The Metropolis Floor is usually a contented searching floor for the Northern giants, although, as they’ve by no means misplaced in six Premier League visits to Nottingham Forest’s floor – profitable three and drawing three – though few Magpies followers want reminding of Wooden’s haunting hat-trick at his previous St James’ Park residence final season.
Nottingham Forest Premier League kind:
Newcastle United Premier League kind:
Newcastle United kind (all competitions):
Group Information
© Imago
There was no change to the Forest damage scenario because the win over West Ham, as Danilo and Ibrahim Sangare stay sidelined on account of their ankle and thigh issues, however James Ward-Prowse is out there once more after being unable to face his mother or father membership.
Nevertheless, each he and ex-Newcastle star Elliot Anderson are combating uphill battles to power their approach again into the primary XI, as Ryan Yates, Nicolas Dominguez and Morgan Gibbs-White ought to kind an untouched central crowd.
Simply forward of them, hotshot Wooden – whom Howe has been singing the praises of forward of this sport – reunites along with his erstwhile crew having scored in every of his final 4 Premier League appearances; he has by no means netted in 5 straight matches within the competitors.
Talking of gamers dealing with their previous golf equipment, Joe Willock‘s afternoon in opposition to Arsenal ended prematurely when he got here off halfway by the second half, however there is no such thing as a suggestion that the injury-plagued midfielder has suffered a setback that might render him unavailable for Sunday.
In consequence, Howe ought to solely be with out his identified damage victims in Sven Botman (knee), Jamaal Lascelles (knee), Kieran Trippier (thigh), Callum Wilson (again), however he has confirmed that Jacob Murphy ought to make his return from a hamstring downside this weekend.
Murphy will little question hope to offer impetus from the bench as Joelinton and Gordon proceed to feed Isak, who has three objectives beneath his belt from simply two Premier League appearances in opposition to Nottingham Forest.
Nottingham Forest attainable beginning lineup:
Sels; Aina, Milenkovic, Murillo, Moreno; Dominguez, Yates; Elanga, Gibbs-White, Hudson-Odoi; Wooden
Newcastle United attainable beginning lineup:
Pope; Livramento, Schar, Burn, Corridor; Longstaff, Guimaraes, Willock; Gordon, Isak, Joelinton
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