Manchester United vs. Nottingham Forest: EPL Previews, and Predictions

On Saturday night, Manchester United and Nottingham Forest will meet at Old Trafford to recover from Premier League losses suffered last week.

The last time these two sides met was in February when United won a nail-biting FA Cup fifth-round match at the City Ground by a single goal scored in stoppage time by Casemiro.

Previous Matches and Head-to-head

The Red Devils' first setback under Ruben Amorim occurred Wednesday night when they lost 2-0 away to Arsenal. This ended Man United's seven-game undefeated streak across all competitions.

After a frustrating first half against Amorim's well-drilled side, Arsenal took all three points at the Emirates thanks to goals from Jurrien Timber and William Saliba in the second half. Ex-Manchester United striker Dimitar Berbatov dubbed Arsenal the "new Stoke City" after Timber's performance.

Few would be shocked to see Manchester United lying in mid-table in the Premier League, holding 11th position with seven points separating them from rivals Manchester City in fourth, following 14 games with five victories, four draws, and five losses.

The Red Devils are looking forward to returning to Old Trafford after a six-game winning streak and one draw in their past seven games there in all competitions. In that time, they have scored 20 goals, allowed just six, and kept three clean sheets.

In addition to winning six of seven Premier League home matches against Nottingham Forest, Manchester United scored in every one of their fourteen Premier League games against the Tricky Trees, which tied for the most excellent scoring record in the league with Swansea City.

Although they were one of the Premier League's unexpected surprises this season, Nottingham Forest's run has taken a turn for the worse. They've lost three of their past four games while allowing nine goals.

On Wednesday night at the Etihad Stadium, the Tricky Trees lost 3-0 to a confident Manchester City side. City had a few fortunate breaks to keep a clean sheet, but they still gave the visitors multiple scoring chances. This was a disappointing follow-up to last weekend's narrow 1-0 win over Ipswich Town.

Despite the loss, head coach Nuno Espirito Santo is optimistic about his team's forward prospects. They are now in sixth place in the Premier League and want to reach the top four by the holiday season.

Forest will play their second away game in Manchester in as many days. Despite losing to Man City, they are still in third place for their away record this season with 11 points from seven games. However, they have lost both of their previous two matches in this format by a score of 3-0.

Forest aims to win back-to-back Premier League meetings against Man United after last year's 2-1 victory at the City Ground. This will onlyt happeninnce April 1992, when renowned coach Brian Clough was in charge.

Manchester United x Nottingham Forest Team News

The Red Devils will be without Luke Shaw, who has had another setback in his rehabilitation from a muscle injury, and Victor Lindelof, who is unable to play due to a groin issue. Thus, Man U will be without a key player.

Amorim has two players returning from midweek suspensions—Lisandro Martinez and Kobbie Mainoo—but Jonny Evans is questionable to play because of an unidentified injury.

Leny Yoro, who has never started a competitive game before in defense, Amad Diallo, Marcus Rashford, and Joshua Zirkzee—Zirkzee scored twice in last weekend's 4-0 victory against Everton—will all be vying for a spot in the starting lineup.

Regarding Nottingham Forest, they are still dealing with the absence of Ibrahim Sangare (hamstring) and Danilo (ankle), and they are hoping to return next season.

After the first half against Manchester City last week, Nuno switched to a back three with wing-backs, so he will consider starting with a four-person defense or something similar.

Elliot Anderson will start in central midfield, vying for a spot ahead of Ryan Yates or Nicolas Dominguez. In attack, ex-Man Utd winger Anthony Elanga might be joined by Chris Wood, Morgan Gibbs-White, Callum Hudson-Odoi, or Jota Silva.

Our predictions

Manchester United to win @ 1.65 on Sky247.ng

After losing midweek, both clubs will be eager to get back on track quickly. Man Utd will play at home and desperately try to avoid falling further behind in the playoff race.

Man United have been impressive at home in recent weeks and should find a way to win, maybe with a clean sheet, despite Forest's strikers' ability to create difficulties on the counterattack.

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