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Nottingham Forest logo
Premier League | Gameweek 22
Jan 19, 2025 at 2pm UK
The City Ground
Southampton logo

Nott'm Forest
3 - 2
Southampton

Anderson (11'), Hudson-Odoi (28'), Wood (41')
FT(HT: 3-0)
Bednarek (60'), Onuachu (90+1')
Downes (33'), Walker-Peters (57'), Aribo (90+5'), Ugochukwu (90+11')

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

Sports Mole previews Sunday's Premier League clash between Nottingham Forest and Southampton, including predictions, team news and possible lineups.

Astonishingly separated by 35 points in the mid-season Premier League rankings, genuine title contenders Nottingham Forest and basement boys Southampton collide in Sunday's clash at the City Ground.

Nuno Espirito Santo's men took a creditable point off of Liverpool in Tuesday's 1-1 draw, two days before the Saints were cruelly slain 3-1 by Manchester United.


Match preview

Nottingham Forest manager Nuno Espirito Santo pictured on December 21, 2024© Imago

Nottingham Forest vs. Liverpool being a top-of-the-table encounter may not have been too shocking a sight in the 1970s and 1980s, but the two red-clad teams are remarkably among the chief contenders for glory in 2024-25, and their close contest in midweek suggested as such.

The irrepressible Chris Wood needed just eight minutes to bank his 13th goal of the Premier League season, but the Tricky Trees were then undone by an unprecedented Liverpool goal, as Kostas Tsimikas's first-touch corner landed on Diogo Jota's head for a first-touch equaliser.

A rare Premier League loss could have also come Forest's way were it not for the magnificent interventions of Matz Sels and Murillo at the back, but Tuesday's draw - while snapping their seven-game winless sequence - temporarily lifted them up to second in the standings before Arsenal leapfrogged them again.

Furthermore, that singular point from the midweek showdown against Liverpool means that Forest have taken more points than any other Premier League team since the beginning of December - 19 from an available 24 - and Jota's leveller was the first goal that Santo's side had shipped in over seven hours of football.

At the other end of the pitch, the Tricky Trees have maintained a commitment to fast starts by scoring the first goal in 17 different Premier League games this season - unsurprisingly a league high - and only Fulham have prevented Forest from netting at home in 2024-25 thus far.

Ivan Juric in charge of Torino in May 2024© Imago

Speaking of scoring first, Southampton's gutsy first-half display at Old Trafford was rewarded when Manuel Ugarte turned the ball past his own goalkeeper, who was the sole reason that Man United did not go into the half-time interval even further behind.

Few Red Devils fans could have complained if Ivan Juric's side travelled home with all three points in the bag, but not for the first time this season, Amad Diallo broke opposition hearts, scoring a sensational 12-minute hat-trick to crush Southampton's hopes of just a second Premier League victory of the campaign.

While no points could be taken home from the Theatre of Dreams, the Saints could certainly take some heart from their positive display on hostile territory, and they would have remained rooted to the foot of the division even if they had come up trumps in midweek.

With 10 points separating them from Santo's former club Wolverhampton Wanderers in 17th place, Juric's survival job appears to be a taller order by the week, and the visitors remain the only team in the top flight with no successes on the road this season.

To make matters worse, Southampton have come out on the wrong end of the scoreline in each of their last three games against Nottingham Forest and have not got the better of the Tricky Trees since a Championship clash in 2012, where Morgan Schneiderlin was among the Saints scorers.

Nottingham Forest Premier League form:


Nottingham Forest form (all competitions):


Southampton Premier League form:


Southampton form (all competitions):


Team News

Nottingham Forest's Ibrahim Sangare pictured on August 17, 2024© Imago

Despite making his return from a long-term ankle injury in the recent FA Cup win over Luton Town, Danilo did not make the matchday squad for the showdown with Liverpool, although there is no suggestion that he has picked up a new concern.

As a result, the hosts' only absentee for Sunday's showdown should be Ibrahim Sangare, whose hamstring issue is not expected to clear up for another month, leaving Santo with plentiful options for change yet again.

However, the Forest boss should be loath to make any changes to the midweek formula, meaning that long-serving Southampton man James Ward-Prowse can only hope for minutes off the bench against his former club.

Meanwhile, much-coveted Southampton wonderkid Tyler Dibling had to be forced off with just over an hour played on Thursday evening owing to an ankle injury, one which has thrown his participation for Sunday's game into severe doubt.

Jack Stephens (unspecified) and Ross Stewart (calf) are also unavailable to Juric, who sent on Will Smallbone to replace Dibling against Man United, albeit while his side were trying to protect a 1-0 lead.

If the Man United-linked attacker is ruled out of this clash, one of Paul Onuachu, Cameron Archer or Adam Armstrong should instead link arms with Kamaldeen Sulemana in the final third.


Nottingham Forest possible starting lineup:
Sels; Aina, Milenkovic, Murillo, Williams; Yates, Anderson; Elanga, Gibbs-White, Hudson-Odoi; Wood

Southampton possible starting lineup:
Ramsdale; Wood, Bednarek, Harwood-Bellis; Sugawara, Downes, Ugochukwu, Walker-Peters; Fernandes; Onuachu, Sulemana


SM words green background

We say: Nottingham Forest 2-0 Southampton

Not since their days in the second tier in 1935 have Southampton been beaten in four straight matches against Nottingham Forest, but that sequence will surely be snapped at the City Ground.

The hosts are working with two days' more rest, while their visitors have concerns over the fitness of their star name in attack, so another Tricky Trees success is the only outcome we can envisage.


For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.


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Written by
Ben Knapton

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Game History

How you voted: Nott'm Forest vs Southampton

Nottingham Forest
90.0%
Draw
4.6%
Southampton
5.4%
130
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Today's games header
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Liverpool23175156213556
2Arsenal24148249222750
3Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest24145540271347
4Chelsea24127547311643
5Manchester CityMan City24125748351341
6Newcastle UnitedNewcastle24125742291341
7Bournemouth24117641281340
8Aston Villa2410773437-337
9Fulham249963632436
10Brentford24103114342133
11Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton248973539-433
12Crystal Palace247982830-230
13Manchester UnitedMan Utd2485112834-629
14Tottenham HotspurSpurs24831348371127
15West Ham UnitedWest Ham2476112946-1727
16Everton236892328-526
17Wolverhampton WanderersWolves2454153452-1819
18Leicester CityLeicester2445152553-2817
19Ipswich TownIpswich2437142249-2716
20Southampton2423191854-369


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