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Nottingham Forest team confirmed as Ange Postecoglou takes on Arsenal in first match

New head coach Ange Postecoglou has named his Nottingham Forest team for his first match in charge.

It has been a quick turnaround for the 60-year-old since his City Ground appointment on Tuesday. He has had minimal time to get to know the squad after replacing Nuno Espirito Santo at the helm.

And his tenure kicks off with quite the challenge - away to Arsenal. The Emirates Stadium has not been a happy hunting ground for Forest up until now; indeed, they are yet to return with a win from any of their previous visits.

Postecoglou has pledged to stick to his philosophy of playing exciting football, but it remains to be seen to what extent he has been able to implement his ideas going into today’s game. Either way, the Reds will be eager to get back on track after being toppled by West Ham United prior to the international break.

The 3-0 thumping at home to the Hammers proved to be Nuno’s final match at the helm. Postecoglou has made just one change to the starting XI from that game.

The alteration made is an enforced one, following an injury to Ola Aina. The full-back is expected to be sidelined for at least three months after he sustained a hamstring problem while playing for Nigeria earlier this week.

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It appears Postecoglou will stick with a back four in the capital. Morato has come in for Aina and is likely to take up the left-back spot, with Neco Williams switching to the right. Nikola Milenkovic and Murillo will line up in the heart of the defence ahead of goalkeeper Matz Sels.

Postecoglou has stuck with the midfield pairing of Ibrahim Sangare and Elliot Anderson. Dan Ndoye, Morgan Gibbs-White and Callum Hudson-Odoi will provide attacking support for forward Chris Wood.

The bench will be made up of John Victor, Douglas Luiz, Arnaud Kalimuendo, Omari Hutchinson, Ryan Yates, James McAtee, Dilane Bakwa, Willy Boly and Nicolo Savona.

Forest: Sels; Williams, Milenkovic, Murillo, Morato; Sangare, Anderson; Ndoye, Gibbs-White, Hudson-Odoi; Wood. Subs: Victor, Luiz, Kalimuendo, Hutchinson, Yates, McAtee, Bakwa, Boly, Savona.

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