Nottingham Forest will host Newcastle United at City Ground on Sunday, eager to return to winning ways and continue their impressive run of form in the Premier League.
Nottingham Forest picked up five wins in a row across all competitions before losing to Aston Villa earlier this week in the UEFA Europa League, and they will be eager to bounce back in the game vs Newcastle United on Sunday. The Tricky Trees will look to get over the disappointment quickly and put on a strong performance here.
On the other hand, Newcastle United are in contrasting form. The Magpies have lost five of their last six matches in all competitions, but they bounced back with a win over Brighton & Hove Albion in their last game. It will be interesting to see if they can build on it and pick up another positive result here.
The Tyneside outfit have endured a disappointing campaign thus far, and they will look to finish strongly. Eddie Howe’s men are 13th in the Premier League table, and they should be doing a lot better with the resources at their disposal. The Hard Tackle takes a closer look at the encounter ahead of the latest meeting between the two sides.
Team News & Tactics
Nottingham Forest
John Victor, Nicolo Savona, and Willy Boly are ruled out due to knee injuries. Callum Hudson-Odoi is set to miss out with a thigh injury. Meanwhile, Dan Ndoye is a doubt with a knock, and Murillo has a thigh injury. Morgan Gibbs-White is a doubt due to a facial injury.
Nottingham Forest will shape up in a 4-2-3-1 formation vs Newcastle United, with Matz Sels in goal. Neco Williams and Ola Aina will start as the full-backs. They will look to keep things tight at the back and help out going forward. Meanwhile, Jair Cunha will start alongside Nikola Milenkovic in central defence.
As for the midfield unit, Ibrahim Sangare will start alongside Elliot Anderson in the double pivot, and they will aim to provide defensive cover and control in the central areas.
Igor Jesus will add creativity and goals to the side in the final third. Omari Hutchinson and Dilane Bakwa will start on the flanks, and they will look to add pace, flair, and unpredictability going forward. Finally, Chris Wood will lead the line for Nottingham Forest vs Newcastle United on Sunday.
Probable Lineup (4-2-3-1): Sels; Aina, Milenkovic, Cunha, Williams; Sangare, Anderson; Hutchinson, Jesus, Bakwa; Wood
Newcastle United
Lewis Miley (calf), Emil Krafth (knee), Valentino Livramento (thigh), and Fabian Schar (ankle) are all ruled out for the away side. Newcastle United will shape up in a 4-3-1-2 formation vs Nottingham Forest, with Aaron Ramsdale in goal.
Kieran Trippier and Lewis Hall will start as the full-backs. They will look to help out at both ends of the pitch. Meanwhile, Sven Botman and Malick Thiaw will form the central defensive partnership.
As for the midfield unit, Bruno Guimaraes will start in the middle of the park alongside Sandro Tonali and Joelinton. Joelinton and Guimaraes will look to add creativity and drive to the side, while Tonali looks to provide defensive cover.
Anthony Elanga will start as the attacking midfielder, and he will look to create openings in the final third. Finally, Nick Woltemade will spearhead the Newcastle United attack alongside Anthony Gordon.
Probable Lineup (4-3-1-2): Ramsdale; Trippier, Botman, Thiaw, Hall; Joelinton, Tonali, Guimaraes; Elanga; Woltemade, Gordon
Key Stats
- Newcastle United have won five of the last six matches against Nottingham Forest. The Magpies are unbeaten in all seven of their Premier League away games against Nottingham Forest (W4 D3), both the most they have faced an opponent without losing and the most Forest have faced a side without winning in the competition.
- Newcastle have lost four of their last five matches in the Premier League.
- Nottingham Forest have won four of their last five matches in the Premier League.
- Only Wolves (7) and Sunderland (14) have scored fewer away Premier League goals this season than Newcastle United (16), with the Magpies failing to score in seven different away games in 2025/26, their most in a season since 2020/21 (8).
- Morgan Gibbs-White has been involved in nine goals in his last eight Premier League games, scoring seven and assisting two. Thanks to his assist against Chelsea last time out, he’s become the first Nottingham Forest to both score 30+ goals (30) and provide 30+ assists (30) in the Premier League.
Player to Watch
Igor Jesus
The Nottingham Forest attacker is our key player to watch out for. He will look to score goals and create opportunities for his teammates. Newcastle United have been quite poor defensively, and he could cause them problems with his goalscoring, scoring ability and playmaking.
Newcastle United will need to keep Igor Jesus quiet if they want to grind out a positive result here. On the other hand, the home team will depend on the Brazilian attacker to make a defining impact in the final third.
Prediction
Nottingham Forest 2-1 Newcastle United
Both teams will fancy their chances against each other, and this is likely to be a close game. Newcastle United are a better team on paper, but they are struggling right now. On the other hand, Nottingham Forest have done quite well in recent weeks.
The Tricky Trees have scored goals for fun, and they have looked quite organised defensively. They will be confident heading into this game despite the midweek defeat against Aston Villa. Both teams are likely to get on the score sheet, but the home team should be able to edge this one.
