Nottingham Forest and Ipswich Town will be eager to return to winning ways when they clash at the City Ground on Saturday.
The 2024/25 Premier League season resumes on Friday with the game between Brighton & Hove Albion and Southampton on Friday. Gameweek 11 will continue on Saturday with six matches, with the action kicking off with four simultaneous fixtures, including Nottingham Forest vs Ipswich Town at the City Ground.
Nottingham Forest could not have hoped for a better start to the 2024/25 season, even though they have seen their momentum snap in recent outings. The Tricky Trees are seventh in the Premier League standings after 12 outings, with second-placed Manchester City only four points ahead. However, Nuno Espirito Santo will be eager to see his charges return to winning ways after losing their last two games.
On the other hand, Ipswich Town might be in the drop zone, but they have been the most impressive promoted team in the Premier League this season. The Tractor Boys have struggled for wins but have lost only five games thus far. However, Kieran McKenna will hope to see his men convert some of the draws into victories to get out of the bottom three.
The most recent league clash between Nottingham Forest and Ipswich Town came in the EFL Championship in December 2018, with the Tricky Trees securing a 2-0 win. The Hard Tackle takes a closer look at the encounter ahead of the latest meeting between the two sides.
Team News & Tactics
Nottingham Forest
Nuno Espirito Santo has greeted a positive update on the team news front ahead of his side’s latest fixture. The Nottingham Forest manager might be bereft of the services of only two first-team players vs Ipswich Town on Saturday.
Morgan Gibbs-White (ankle), Elliot Anderson (foot), and Anthony Elanga (shoulder) are closing in on returning. However, the trio will need late fitness tests to determine their availability. Meanwhile, Danilo (ankle) and Ibrahim Sangare (hamstring) remain on the sidelines.
Matz Sels is an automatic pick between the sticks, with Nottingham Forest lining up in a 4-2-3-1 formation vs Ipswich Town on Saturday. The backline should feature Ola Aina, Nikola Milenkovic, Murillo, and Alex Moreno.
As for the midfield unit, Ryan Yates should pair up with Nicolas Dominguez in the double pivot, with the duo forming a dynamic partnership in the middle of the park. Morgan Gibbs-White will reprise the no. 10 role if he is fit and available. Finally, Chris Wood should return as the central striker, with Callum Hudson-Odoi and Jota Silva being the two wide attackers.
Probable Lineup (4-2-3-1): Sels; Aina, Milenkovic, Murillo, Moreno; Yates, Dominguez; Hudson-Odoi, Gibbs-White, Silva; Wood
Ipswich Town
Like his counterpart in the Nottingham Forest dugout, Kieran McKenna has greeted positive updates on the team news front ahead of the trip to the City Ground. The Ipswich Town manager might be without only three first-team players on Saturday.
Jacob Greaves (hamstring) and Nathan Broadhead (groin) are fit and available after recovering from their injuries. Meanwhile, Ben Johnson and Kalvin Phillips require late fitness tests to determine their availability after shrugging off their knocks. However, Janoi Donacien (ankle), George Hirst (knee), and Chiedozie Ogbene (achilles) remain on the sidelines.
Arijanet Muric should take his spot between the sticks, with Ipswich Town lining up in a 4-2-3-1 formation in front of him vs Nottingham Forest on Saturday. The backline should feature Axel Tuanzebe, Dara O’Shea, Cameron Burgess, and Leif Davis.
As for the midfield unit, Jens Cajuste and captain Samy Morsy will likely pair up in the double pivot. Omari Hutchinson will reprise the no. 10 role, with Wes Burns and Sammie Szmodicz being the two wide attackers. Finally, Liam Delap will spearhead the Ipswich Town attack against Nottingham Forest this weekend.
Probable Lineup (4-2-3-1): Muric; Tuanzebe, O’Shea, Burgess, Davis; Cajuste, Morsy; Burns, Hutchinson, Szmodics; Delap
Key Stats
Ipswich Town are without a win in 14 away games vs Nottingham Forest since a 1-0 victory on 5 December 1999 when Matt Holland scored the only goal (D6 L8). Saturday’s clash will be the fifth Premier League meeting between the two sides and the first since Forest’s 4-1 home win on 10 December 1994.
Nottingham Forest are unbeaten in their last eight Premier League games against newly promoted sides, winning the four most recent outings. However, the Tricky Trees lost only one of their opening ten league matches this season but have faced a defeat in their last two ties. They last suffered three consecutive top-flight defeats in March.
Ipswich Town have drawn six of their 12 top-flight games this season, more than any other side. In addition, the Tractor Boys have struggled to keep their opponents quiet, and their only clean sheet in 2024/25 thus far came in September’s 0-0 draw at Brighton & Hove Albion.
Nottingham Forest have scored the opening goal in a league-high ten games this season.
Chris Wood has 23 Premier League goals for Nottingham Forest, one short of the club record held by Bryan Roy.
Player to Watch
Liam Delap
Embed from Getty Images
While the returning Chris Wood will have a point to prove and is a viable candidate for the section, we have picked Liam Delap as our Player to Watch for Saturday’s game at the City Ground. The Englishman has hit the ground running at Ipswich Town, with his stock rising with every passing outing.
Delap is vying to become the first Ipswich Town player to score in four consecutive top-flight away appearances since Paul Mariner did so in five games in 1983. With modern-day history on the cards, expect the English striker to make his mark against Nottingham Forest this weekend.
Prediction
Nottingham Forest 2-1 Ipswich Town
Nuno Espirito Santo will be desperate to prove that the two recent defeats were nothing more than a blip in a memorable 2024/25 campaign. The hosts have the quality to clinch the three points this weekend, although Ipswich Town will not go down without a fight while taking the game to Santo’s men.
Liam Delap will be in his element again, and we might even see Ipswich Town taking the lead. However, Chris Wood and Callum Hudson-Odoi should script a fabulous turnaround, with The Hard Tackle predicting a 2-1 victory for Nuno Espirito Santo and his charges.