MX23RW : Wednesday, December 11 20:34:40| >> :600:116439:116439:
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Nottingham Forest logo
EFL Cup | First Round
Aug 11, 2021 at 7.45pm UK
The City Ground
Bradford City

Nott'm Forest
2 - 1
Bradford

Carvalho (39', 41')
Cafu (15')
FT(HT: 2-0)
Cooke (54')
Cousin-Dawson (7')

Preview: Nottingham Forest vs. Bradford City - prediction, team news, lineups

Sports Mole previews Wednesday's EFL Cup clash between Nottingham Forest and Bradford City, including predictions, team news and possible lineups.

Nottingham Forest play host to Bradford City in the EFL Cup first round looking to bounce back from their dramatic defeat to Coventry City on Sunday.

Meanwhile, Bradford, now under the leadership of Derek Adams, started their League Two campaign with a goalless draw at Exeter City.


Match preview

Nottingham Forest manager Chris Hughton gives instructions to his players on August 8, 2021© Reuters

Having taken a half-time lead with a goal in front of their strong travelling support, Chris Hughton would have felt that Forest were well on their way to victory at the Ricoh Arena.

However, the Sky Blues rallied after the break and ultimately deserved their last-gasp winner, leaving Hughton with much to ponder going forward.

While positives could be taken from the performance, the majority of Forest's fans are naturally asking when further additions will be made to the first-team squad.

Despite the promise of their younger players in the final third, the East Midlands giants desperately require reinforcements over the coming weeks with key figures now in the treatment room.

On a positive note, Lyle Taylor got on the scoresheet at the weekend as he bids to improve on netting just four times during his first year at the City Ground.

Derek Adams pictured in April 2019© Reuters

Instead of overseeing Morecambe's first-ever year in League One, Adams made the decision to pen a long-term contract with fourth-tier Bradford.

Adams would have been relatively content with a share of the spoils against promotion contenders Exeter after the Bantams ended last season with six defeats from seven games.

With it being all change on the personnel front during the summer, Wednesday's fixture at Forest provides Adams with a chance to further bed in his new signings.

Nevertheless, despite nine fresh faces and more potentially arriving on loan, there will be a desire to cause one of the upsets of the round with the pressure firmly on the shoulders of their hosts.

Nottingham Forest form (all competitions):
  • L

Bradford City form (all competitions):
  • D



Team News

Nottingham Forest's Joe Worrall pictured in February 2021© Reuters

While Loic Mbe Soh and Nuno Da Costa are definite absentees for Forest, Joe Worrall will be assessed in the days ahead of the game.

Tobias Figueiredo appears likely to be brought into the starting lineup, as do Cafu and Philip Zinckernagel in midfield.

Ateef Konate and Joao Carvalho are also pushing for opportunities in creative areas.

Adams will make a number of changes to his Bradford XI with Charles Vernam and Oliver Crankshaw both in line to earn a spot in the side.

Second-choice goalkeeper Sam Hornby should feature between the sticks, with Fiacre Kelleher likely to earn a debut in the middle of the defence.

Nottingham Forest possible starting lineup:
Horvath; Lawrence-Gabriel, Figueiredo, McKenna, Bong; Yates, Cafu; Konate, Carvalho, Zinckernagel; Taylor

Bradford City possible starting lineup:
Hornby; Threlkeld, Canavan, Kelleher, Ridehalgh; Watt, Sutton; Crankshaw, Cooke, Vernam; Cook


SM words green background

We say: Nottingham Forest 2-0 Bradford City

With Hughton expected to make widespread changes, Bradford will fancy their chances of causing the upset.

However, Forest's fringe members will be keen to make a positive impression, leading us to predict a relatively comfortable win for the home side.



Top tip

Our expert tipster partners at Sporita.com are predicting a home win in this match. Click here to find out what else they are predicting for this game and for more of their tried-and-tested football tips.Home Win:data



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Written by
Darren Plant

Data Analysis

Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a Nottingham Forest win with a probability of 39.51%. A win for Bradford City had a probability of 32.91% and a draw had a probability of 27.6%.

The most likely scoreline for a Nottingham Forest win was 1-0 with a probability of 11.49%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 2-1 (8.26%) and 2-0 (7.29%). The likeliest Bradford City win was 0-1 (10.26%), while for a drawn scoreline it was 1-1 (13.01%). The actual scoreline of 2-1 was predicted with an 8.3% likelihood. Our data analysis correctly predicted that Nottingham Forest would win this match.


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Game History

How you voted: Nott'm Forest vs Bradford

Nottingham Forest
64.9%
Draw
15.6%
Bradford City
19.5%
77
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General view of Nottingham Forest's City Ground taken August 2018
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