Nottingham Forest will host Arsenal, with the two teams battling on opposite ends of the table and aiming for success at the weekend.

Nottingham Forest have continued to showcase the polarised side of the game under Sean Dyche in recent clashes as they prepare for the daunting task of facing Arsenal. After a morale-boosting victory over nearest relegation rival West Ham United away from home in the most recent gameweek, the Tricky Trees crashed out of the FA Cup a few days later against Wrexham.

Starting with the victory in London over the Hammers, it took Nottingham Forest seven points clear of their rivals in the Premier League standings. Given the morale boost from that victory, their fans would have hoped for another straightforward win in the FA Cup, but things were different then.

Forest found themselves two goals down in the first half, and after an Igor Jesus strike to reduce the deficit, Wrexham scored again. A double from Callum Hudson-Odoi restored balance, only for Forest to bow out in a penalty shoot-out as former Arsenal man Arthur Okonkwo denied Jesus and Omari Hutchinson.

Dyche was naturally unhappy, and with Nottingham Forest having only one win in six games across all competitions, this might not be the best time to face their next opponents in league leaders Arsenal. Contrastingly, the Gunners are on a stellar five-game winning streak away from home, with the latest of those coming away at Chelsea in the first leg of the EFL Cup semi-final.

That victory also extended their unbeaten run to ten games across all competitions, which includes nine wins and one draw. That stalemate came on home soil against Liverpool in the most recent league matchday, and the Merseysiders are the only team to deny Arsenal from scoring this season, twice.

That draw was seen as a missed opportunity by many Arsenal fans, given Manchester City had drawn their game against Brighton & Hove Albion in Gameweek 21, and a win would have taken the Gunners eight points clear at the top. Meanwhile, Mikel Arteta’s side have since responded to that home draw with two wins in the cup competitions.

Arsenal advanced to the fourth round of the FA Cup with a stellar 4-1 reverse win over Portsmouth and then against Chelsea in the EFL Cup. Now, Arteta will want the Gunners’ stellar run away from home to continue, as they take on Forest in a fixture they dropped points last season.

Team News & Tactics

Nottingham Forest

Nottingham Forest’s injury issues have eased up over the past few weeks, with striker Chris Wood still the only first eleven star missing from action, possibly even Ryan Yates. The latter is back in full training, and Sean Dyche insisted he was back on the grass.

John Victor is another absentee, with the Nottingham Forest boss stating the keeper has undergone a knee procedure, which will keep him out for a short period, given that this resembles a minor problem, as per the manager.

On loan full-back Oleksandr Zinchenko will be ineligible, and there are talks of Forest looking to end the deal with Arsenal this month. Dyche is expected to name a familiar lineup for this home clash, with Nicolas Dominguez and key man Elliot Anderson stationed in his midfield setup.

At the back, Murillo and Nikola Milenkovic are the main centre-backs for Nottingham Forest, with the recently returned Ola Aina and Neco Williams managing the full-back roles. Morgan Gibbs-White will hope to improve his form and will orchestrate the attacking setup, with Omari Hutchinson and Callum Hudson-Odoi in the wide areas supporting Igor Jesus in the final third.

Probable Lineup (4-2-3-1): Sels; Aina, Milenkovic, Murillo, Williams; Anderson, Dominguez; Hutchinson, Gibbs-White, Hudson-Odoi; Jesus

Arsenal

Mikel Arteta has confirmed there were no fresh concerns following the EFL Cup semi-final win over Chelsea in midweek. However, he kept the news regarding a few returning players close to his chest, and failed to provide a clear update on Riccardo Calafiori, Cristhian Mosquera, and Piero Hincapie.

The absence of those defenders has created a shortage at the back and a bit over usage of regulars in many of those positions. Without Calafiori and Hincapie, it remains to be seen what Arteta does to the left-back position, given Jurrien Timber started there in midweek. Myles Lewis-Skelly could get a start there if the Arsenal boss prefers to manage Ben White’s load after the right-back started the last two games.

Beyond the possible inclusion of Lewis-Skelly and David Raya, Arteta might retain the same lineup for the weekend. The midfield will comprise Martin Odegaard, Declan Rice and Martin Zubimendi, while Arteta might prefer to continue with Bukayo Saka, a captaincy candidate in FPL for Gameweek 22, on the wings, as well as Leandro Trossard.

Similarly, Viktor Gyokeres gave a good account of himself in the Chelsea clash, and now he is primed to start once again at the weekend. Arteta does have the option of using the fit-again duo Kai Havertz and Gabriel Jesus, but he will want the Swede to gain some more momentum as he leads the line for Arsenal against Nottingham Forest this weekend.

Probable Lineup (4-2-3-1): Raya; Timber, Saliba, Gabriel, Lewis-Skelly; Zubimendi, Rice; Saka, Odegaard, Trossard; Gyokeres

Key Stats

• Arsenal are undefeated in their last six matches in the Premier League.
• Arsenal have kept a clean sheet in their last three matches against Nottingham Forest across all competitions. The Gunners are also undefeated in their last five matches against Nottingham Forest in all competitions.
• Nottingham Forest have one win in their last six games across all competitions.
• Arsenal are the only side not to have trailed by at least two goals in a Premier League game this season, last doing so at Liverpool last May. Meanwhile, Nottingham Forest have a goal difference of -8 in a losing game state this season (F6 A14), with only West Ham having lower (-9).

Player to Watch

Viktor Gyokeres

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The Swede gave a good account of himself in the game against Chelsea when the pressure was mounting on him over the last many games. A goal and an assist will have hopefully brought back the confidence in Gyokeres to now rise up with his performances.

While he has a limited number of Premier League goals despite his big reputation previously, Gyokeres did score one of those strikes against Forest in the reverse fixture. Now, as Arsenal enter a crucial period of their season and this trip to Nottingham is rather tricky, Mikel Arteta will love to see the big striker on the scoresheet at the weekend.

Prediction

Nottingham Forest 0-2 Arsenal

Nottingham Forest are in a dreadful run of form, especially after crashing out of the FA Cup at the hands of Wrexham. Those results, coupled with the fact that they have only one win in their last six games across all competitions, which incidentally came against a hapless West Ham United side, mean there is not much hope for them to get a result at the weekend.

Arsenal are contrastingly in a much superior vein of form, winning nine of their last ten games across all competitions and on a five-game winning streak away from home. Such form is a highlight of a title-chasing side, which clearly points towards another victory, this time away at Nottingham Forest. The Hard Tackle predicts a 2-0 win for Mikel arteta and his charges.