Brentford welcome Nottingham Forest to the Gtech Community Stadium looking to turn around their fortunes following five straight losses in the league.
- BTTS YES @ 8/11 with Paddy Power
- Over 2.5 goals @ 10/11 with Bet365
These odds are correct at the time of publication and are subject to change.
- Date: 20/01/24
- Kick-off time: 17:30
- Location: Gtech Community Stadium
This is a very important fixture at the bottom of the table, with both Brentford and Nottingham Forest desperate to pick up three points.
The Bees, who finished an impressive ninth last season, find themselves in 16th and three points above the drop zone as they try to fix their horrendous form. Despite the imminent return of star man Ivan Toney, they are in real danger of being dragged into a relegation fight. Forest currently sit one place and one point above their hosts with 20 points, but have played a game more.
A win for either team will be huge for their chances of survival. Victory for the hosts will move them up to 14th and give them a bit of breathing space between themselves and the drop zone. Lose, and they will be dangerously looking over their shoulders. The visitors are in a similar position, it is a must-win.
Brentford’s home form has been poor, with Thomas Frank’s side victorious just three times in ten games. Their downturn in results have coincided with the injury to Bryan Mbeumo. The forward has scored seven Premier League goals this season and his absence has been felt. However, Thomas Frank will hope that the imminent return of Ivan Toney will drastically improve their attacking woes. The Englishman scored 20 goals last season and has missed the entirety of this season through suspension.
New Forest manager Nuno Espirito Santo has been in charge of four games after he took over from Steve Cooper in December, with an excellent 2-1 vs Man United the highlight of his short tenure so far. They have scored just 24 goals this season, but seven have come in the last three games. Chris Wood leads the way with seven goals on the season, whilst Anthony Elanga and Taiwo Awoniyi have bagged four each. Defensively they have struggled, as they have kept just three clean sheets all season, though one did come at Stamford Bridge.
In 38 meetings, Brentford have been victorious over Nottingham Forest 14 times. There is not much to separate the two sides, as Forest have also come out on top on 13 occasions, whilst 11 games ended in a draw. The reverse fixture was another stalemate as Nicolas Dominguez cancelled out Christopher Norgaard’s opener to earn the home side a point at the City Ground.
The Bees are unbeaten in the last five matchups, though three were draws. Forest enjoyed plenty of success before this, as they won three in a row between 2019 and 2020 whilst both teams were in the Championship.
Premier League 
