Nottingham Forest predicted XI for Man United clash as Nuno sweats on key man’s fitness
After the euphoria of FA Cup success, Nottingham Forest will now aim to keep the good times going in the Premier League too.
The Reds clinched their place in the semi-finals of the FA Cup on Saturday courtesy of their penalty shootout triumph at Brighton and Hove Albion. Victory set up a semi-final tie with Manchester City at Wembley, to take place next month.
Before then, though, Forest have some huge games in the league as they look to clinch Champions League qualification – starting with tonight’s fixture at home to Manchester United (8pm kick-off).
Ahead of the match, Nuno Espirito Santo’s side are third in the table, six points clear of fifth-placed Manchester City.
They go into this evening’s clash looking to make it three league wins on the spin, having toppled Manchester City and Ipswich Town prior to the international break. But they might find themselves without top scorer Chris Wood.
The front man sustained a hip injury while on duty for New Zealand last week and missed the cup quarter-final against the Seagulls. Nuno gave little away about Wood’s fitness when he spoke in his pre-match press conference on Monday, simply saying the striker was “improving”.
If Wood does not get the green light to face United, Taiwo Awoniyi would almost certainly start up front. The Nigerian has proved he can do it in the Garibaldi before, and he gave a good account of himself at the Amex Stadium.
Nuno opted to start wingers Callum Hudson-Odoi and Anthony Elanga on the bench against Brighton as he packed the centre of the pitch. It would come as little surprise to see the duo back in the XI this evening, though. The latter will be particularly keen to put in a performance against his former club.
Midfielders Ryan Yates and Danilo certainly did their bit for the Reds on Saturday. Indeed, Yates scored the winning penalty to send his team to Wembley. However, the partnership of Nicolas Dominguez and Elliot Anderson has worked well in the league of late and may well get another outing this evening.
The weekend’s exertions might come into Nuno’s thinking over his line-up. A huge effort was put in by the players, particularly those who played the 120 minutes. There is also a slight concern over Morgan Gibbs-White, who was withdrawn in the 119th minute after colliding with a post earlier in the game. He is among the players being assessed after the weekend.
Asked whether he had any fitness concerns ahead of tonight, Nuno said: “Of course we have after we played extra-time. We have to assess them all.
“We are recovering well. The joy and the happiness of coming through and getting to play at Wembley will give us an extra run for tomorrow, for sure.”
Forest predicted XI to face United: Sels; Aina, Milenkovic, Murillo, Williams; Dominguez, Anderson; Elanga, Gibbs-White, Hudson-Odoi; Awoniyi.
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