Premier League news: Nottingham Forest vs Manchester City – Five key battles and score prediction
High-flying Nottingham Forest host reigning Premier League champions Manchester City on Saturday in a match that could have huge ramifications for Champions League qualification.
After both sides booked a spot in the FA Cup quarter-finals last weekend, attention now returns to the closest top-four race in years, with only six points separating Forest in third from 10th-placed Aston Villa.
City beat the Tricky Trees comfortably in the reverse fixture at the Etihad back in December and will be hoping for more of the same this time around, while Forest are likely desperate to get back to winning ways on the back of a lean run.
Sports News Blitz writer Jon Shea considers five key battles to anticipate at the City Ground and offers a score prediction.
Nikola Milenkovic vs Erling Haaland
Erling Haaland continues to score bags of goals for City, although he does find himself in the unlikely territory of not leading the Golden Boot race.
The Norwegian international has bagged 20 Premier League goals so far this season, five behind Liverpool’s Egyptian ace Mohamed Salah.
City have missed his presence up front recently as he is often in the right place at the right time to finish a move and is deadly when doing so.
With the title now out of reach for his struggling side, Haaland will focus on making it three Golden Boots in a row – a feat only Thierry Henry and Alan Shearer have achieved.
He has a good record when it comes to Forest, with five goals in five games against them, and a repeat of his 2022 hat-trick would put him just two strikes behind Salah.
Nikola Milenkovic – who arrived from Fiorentina in the summer – has been a revelation for Forest this term, forming a formidable partnership with Murillo.
The Serbian is a monstrous force in a defensive unit that has kept the second-most clean sheets in the division.
When you consider how integral defence is to Nuno’s system and the campaign Forest are having, the signing of Milenkovic is proving a real coup.
Chris Wood vs Abdukodir Khusanov
Chris Wood is having the season of his life, racking up 18 goals so far.
The New Zealand international has been around the Premier League for a while now, but he has taken it up a notch this term.
Nuno is getting the best out of Wood by playing to his strengths – providing him with crosses and getting him involved around the box.
He has not scored for a couple of games, but Wood remains key to Forest’s chances of a top-four finish.
Likewise, City’s Abdukodir Khusanov has proved a shining light in a defence that has struggled all season.
Since arriving in January, the Uzbek international has shown a good defensive eye and demonstrated the pace to go with it.
Pep Guardiola clearly backs the defender, having started him against Real Madrid and Liverpool in recent weeks, and the 21-year-old has given a good account of himself.
Wood is sure to be a different kind of test, though, and Khusanov will have to get stuck in if he wants to get a grip on Forest’s flying forward.
YOU MAY ALSO LIKE: WSL news: A radical shift? The debate over relegation in the Women’s Super League
Morgan Gibbs-White vs Nico Gonzalez
Morgan Gibbs-White has brought a much-needed energy and passion to Forest’s season.
With five goals and assists to his name as well, Forest fans love him and rightly so.
A difficult man to contain, he never stops working for his team and has revealed a dream of bringing the Champions League to the City Ground.
On the other hand, it is difficult to know what to make of Nico Gonzalez since his January arrival in Manchester from Porto.
The youngster has started every league match for Guardiola’s side in that time, providing a touch of defensive stability in a midfield lacking the injured Rodri.
Despite their title defence having gone up in smoke ages ago, City still need to secure Champions League football for next season and Gonzalez’s knack for breaking up play is critical to their top-four ambitions.
On Saturday, however, he has a tough task in containing an energetic Forest midfield.
READ NEXT: Fantasy Premier League news: Gameweek 28 preview – Mo Salah to shine, striker replacements needed
Murillo vs Omar Marmoush
Omar Marmoush has been nothing short of a revelation since arriving from Eintracht Frankfurt, first lighting up the Etihad with his hat-trick against Newcastle United in February.
He plays off the shoulder of Haaland and offers a completely different threat to the star striker.
The Egyptian is a tricky and talented dribbler who was known for both his creativity and goal-scoring ability during his time in Germany.
Murillo has been similarly brilliant for Forest.
Hugely confident on the ball, he has formed a formidable centre-back partnership with Milenkovic over the course of the campaign.
Together they offer a useful combination of flair, confidence, and grit that has helped to elevate Forest to the league position they currently find themselves in.
YOU MAY BE INTERESTED IN: Championship news: Portsmouth vs Leeds Utd – Five key battles and score prediction
Nuno Espirito Santo vs Pep Guardiola
The Forest boss is bound to be one of the contenders for Manager of the Season come May and could even be a shoo-in if the Tricky Trees finish in the top four.
He has certainly not had it easy at Forest, but the Portuguese is loving life at the City Ground right now.
Nuno also has a history of beating Guardiola, securing wins at both Wolves and Tottenham Hotspur.
In addition, Nuno has turned the City Ground into one of the most difficult away grounds in the league and brought back a feel-good factor to the club.
Guardiola, it must be said, is enduring a historically poor season by his extremely high standards.
The league title looks to be heading to Liverpool and City have already been eliminated from the Champions League, but they can at least still secure the FA Cup, having progressed to the quarter-finals last weekend.
Qualification for next season’s Champions League is now simply essential.
It has been a disappointing year for the reigning champions, to say the least, but a learning curve is sometimes necessary and Guardiola will want to finish the campaign in style.
Summary
It is difficult to see Forest losing at the City Ground considering their recent record there.
Furthermore, I do not see much difference between the two sides, so I believe it will end in a draw.
Score prediction: Nottingham Forest 1-1 Manchester City
MORE FROM JON SHEA: Petr Cech, Usain Bolt and the famous athletes who switched sport codes
