Nottingham Forest vs Southampton

Premier League basement boys Southampton head to the City Ground to take on surprise top-four candidates Nottingham Forest. 

Nottingham Forest failed to extend their incredible six-game winning streak in the Premier League during midweek but held runaway leaders Liverpool to a spirited 1-1 draw at this venue. Despite retaining just 29% possession, Nuno Espirito Santo’s side held the Reds winless in their second league meeting this season (W1, D1), reaffirming their top-four credentials while steering four points clear of fifth-placed Chelsea. Another home contest bodes well as the Tricky Trees boast an impressive home league record this term (W5, D3, L2), with three of those five wins coming in their last four outings at the City Ground. Furthermore, they’ve been ruthless against bottom-half strugglers, winning ten out of 11 top-flight encounters against sides ranked 11th or worse throughout the 2024/25 campaign (D1) whilst keeping eight clean sheets.

Forest’s formidable form against out-of-sorts teams spells trouble for rock-bottom Southampton, whose dreadful league campaign hit a new low in midweek as they lost 3-1 at Manchester United despite leading beyond the 80th minute. It was the 13th time in 21 Premier League fixtures this season that opponents outscored the Saints in the second half, casting further doubt on Southampton’s faint hopes of posting only their second league win in 2024/25 (W1, D3, L17). Manager Ivan Juric has lost all four top-flight games in charge of the south-coast underachievers, contributing to the worst-ever 21-game start by a Premier League club! As if that’s not ominous enough, the visitors have failed to get on the scoresheet in five of their last seven league outings (D1, L6).