Man City vs Nottingham Forest: Prediction, Preview & Betting Tips

Simply put, Manchester City are undoubtedly experiencing their worst-ever form under Pep Guardiola since his initial first season at the club. They are now looking like they will be involved in a top-four battle rather than a title challenge. The Citizens have now lost six of their previous seven games following their defeat to Liverpool, which leaves the current champions 11 points behind the Reds and in fifth place.

City are now without a clean sheet in their last six, coming up against a Nottingham Forest side who have scored first in six of their last seven. Forest have only lost once in their last six away games and will fancy their chances against a City side who simply can't buy a win. The hosts are unbeaten in the last four meetings between the two sides, so a draw could be on the cards here – Man City 1-1 Nottingham Forest

Man City host Nottingham Forest in the Premier League, desperate for a win following a disastrous run of form.

Date: 04/12/24

Kick-off time: 19:30

Venue: Etihad Stadium

Pep Guardiola’s team are in uncharted territory, as they have lost an incredible six of their last seven games in all competitions, including a five-game losing streak. As a result of their untimely collapse, they have fallen out of the top four and now trail leaders Liverpool by 11 points, having lost to The Reds at the weekend. Three points are a must to relieve the ever-growing pressure on the side.

Nottingham Forest are their visitors, having made a surprising yet impressive beginning to the campaign. Two losses in their last three have brought them back down to earth, however they still occupy sixth place, just one point adrift of the top four and their upcoming opponents. A win on Wednesday would see them overtake City after 14 games.

Despite their poor form, City will still be favourites at the Etihad. Although, the visitors should have confidence in exploiting a nervy defence. City have not kept a clean sheet in their last seven and have conceded at least two goals in all of them. In total, they have allowed 19. This could be an ideal matchup for striker Chris Wood, who leads Forest with eight goals and has given plenty of opposition defences trouble.

After a strong defensive start to the season for Nuno Espirito Santo’s men, they have been breached more often than they would have liked in recent games. That being said, they have kept three clean sheets in the last six. But back-to-back games against superior attacks in Newcastle and Arsenal saw them concede three in each. This may give Man City optimism of getting back on track with the plethora of talent they have at their disposal.

Erling Haaland represents most of City’s goalscoring, with 12 of their 22 goals. However, only two of them have come in the last eight. They will need to get their main man back and firing, and they will hope that a potential return of Kevin De Bruyne to the lineup can provide the spark they have been desperately searching for.

Since Forest’s promotion in 2022, these two sides have met four times in the Premier League. City are unbeaten in these games, winning three and drawing one. They have conceded just one goal, that coming in a 1-1 draw at the City Ground in February 2023. Last season, City did the double over their opponents, as they won 2-0 in both fixtures. Phil Foden and Erling Haaland were the goalscorers in the victory at the Etihad.

Man City vs Nottingham Forest will be available to watch on Amazon Prime Video.

Man City

Rodri and Oscar Bobb remain out long-term whilst Mateo Kovacic is not expected back until late this month. Jeremy Doku returned to the matchday squad last weekend, and they could also get John Stones back this time.

Nottingham Forest

Forest have a mostly fit squad to choose from with only Ibrahim Sangare and Danilo expected out, both suffering from long-term injuries.

Man City:

In their last five games, Man City have drawn one and lost four. It has been a disastrous run of form for City in which they have gone winless and fallen behind in the title race. This run started with Champions League action where they were defeated 4-1 away from home despite taking the lead through Phil Foden. Viktor Gyokeres scored a hat-trick to help his side turn it around.

Another loss followed, this time in the league at Brighton. Once again they took the lead thanks to an Erling Haaland strike, but late goals from Joao Pedro and Matt O’Riley secured three points for The Seagulls. Their nightmare continued at home to Tottenham as they were crushed 4-0. James Maddison (x2), Pedro Porro and Brennan Johnson were on the scoresheet.

City finally snapped their losing streak at home to Feyenoord, but they dropped more points in stunning fashion. After taking a 3-0 lead, they allowed their visitors back into it in the final 14 minutes, including conceding an 89th minute equaliser. Last time out they faced Liverpool in a huge clash at Anfield. They lost once more with goals from Cody Gakpo and Mohamed Salah condemning them to a 2-0 defeat.

Nottingham Forest:

In their last five games, Nottingham Forest have won three and lost two. It had been an incredible run for Forest, but they have slowed down a little as of late. However, they did win their most recent game 1-0 at home to Ipswich. Chris Wood scored the winner from the penalty spot.

This followed two losses in a row, the first at home to Newcastle. They were defeated 3-1, as Alexander Isak, Joelinton and Harvey Barnes netted second half goals following Murillo’s early opener. They then visited Arsenal, where they lost 3-0. Bukayo Saka, Thomas Partey and Ethan Nwaneri were on the scoresheet.

Before this, they hosted West Ham, a game which they comfortably won 3-0. Wood, Callum Hudson-Odoi and Ola Aina were the goalscorers. This run started with a trip to Leicester, beating The Foxes 3-1. Ryan Yates’ opener was cancelled out by Jamie Vardy before a second half brace from Wood earned them the three points.

• Latest match predictions
• Football tips
• Football accumulator tips
• Football bet of the day