Manchester United will be looking to bounce back from their defeat to Arsenal as they take on Nottingham Forest on Saturday.
By Zach Lowy
Can United Keep Up Their Impressive Home Form?
Slowly but surely, Old Trafford is becoming a fortress again for Manchester United. With the exception of a 1-1 draw vs. Chelsea, Manchester United have won each of their last six home matches. After kicking off the Rúben Amorim era with a 1-1 draw at Ipswich, United prevailed with a comeback home win vs. Bodø/Glimt in the UEFA Europa League before demolishing Everton 4-0 at the Theatre of Dreams. They were smacked with a cruel dose of reality by Arsenal on Wednesday, being undone by second-half goals from defenders Jurriën Timber and William Saliba and succumbing to a 2-0 defeat – their first loss since 27 October.
United have won 11 of their last 12 meetings vs. Nottingham Forest, but their most recent Premier League meeting in December 2023, would go the way of the Tricky Trees, with Morgan Gibbs-White restoring Forest’s lead in the 82nd minute to secure a late victory. But while United enter the match as the overwhelming favourites, they face a tall task as they take on a Nottingham Forest side that currently sits three points and six places above them.
Can Wood Deliver the Goods?
After ending a 23-year top-flight absence under Steve Cooper, Nottingham Forest narrowly avoided relegation by four points and six points in their first two campaigns back in the Premier League. Today, however, they find themselves in seventh place after winning six of their first 14 league matches. Six years after leading Wolves to a seventh-place finish and their first European qualification in four decades, Nuno Espírito Santo has Forest fans dreaming of a return to continental competition after three decades away.
Having lost three of their last four matches – conceding three goals in each of those defeats – Forest are in need of a response following, particularly after the 3-0 set-back at Manchester City in the week. If they are to pull off their first away win since 25 October, they’ll need Chris Wood to deliver. The 32-year-old New Zealand international is in the best form of his career, scoring nine of Forest’s 16 goals, including the winning penalty in their 1-0 victory against Ipswich on 30 November. Only Mohamed Salah (13) and Erling Haaland (12) have scored more goals than Wood – we’re backing him to come up clutch against United.
Amorim to Change Things Up in Attack
If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. That’s usually the case, but not iif you’re Rúben Amorim – after demolishing Everton 4-0 thanks to braces from Marcus Rashford and Joshua Zirkzee as well as a brace of assists from Amad Diallo, United’s new Portuguese technician dropped all three of them for their trip to Arsenal, a decision which proved costly and resulted in a stale attacking display in North London. We’re expecting Diallo, Zirkzee, Rashford and Lisandro Martínez to return to the side as United look to get back to winning ways ahead of a busy week that will see them travel to Viktoria Plzeň in the UEFA Europa League, Manchester City in the Premier League, and Tottenham Hotspur in the EFL Cup. All signs point to this reinforced attacking firepower proving vital for United as they look to continue their impressive record vs. Forest.
Prediction
United are strong at home while Forest need a pick-me-up, so perhaps a score draw is on the cards?
(Cover image from IMAGO)
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