England Round 27

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Nottingham Forest vs Liverpool Preview:

Possible starting lineups:

Nottingham Forest:
Sels; Williams, Niakhate, Murillo, Toffolo; Danilo, Dominguez; Elanga, Gibbs-White, Hudson-Odoi; Awoniyi

Liverpool:
Kelleher; Bradley, Konate, Van Dijk, Robertson; Elliott, Gomez, Mac Allister; Gakpo, Danns, Luis Diaz

Nottingham Forest will host Liverpool at the City Ground on Saturday afternoon in one of the most interesting matches this weekend in the Premier League. The Tricky Trees haven't played the season in best possible way, so they are just outside the drop zone. The actual results are mixed, they have one win and one defeat in the last two rounds. Nottingham managed to beat West Ham 2:0 at home, but lost 4:2 to Aston Villa in Birmingham. As You could see, they scored two goals in each game. Manager Nuno Espirito Santo could be satisfied with the last results, but there is no space for relaxation. Only 4 points separates Nottingham from the 18th-placed Luton. Santo is surely feeling some pressure, as well as the players. There are some additional issues - all of Ibrahim Sangare, Ola Aina and Willy Boly have returned from Africa Cup of Nations with injuries, and most probably the trio won't play here. Arsenal loanee Nuno Tavares and Chris Wood have also been ruled out.

Liverpool are leaders on the table and this is a successful period for them. Last weekend they beat Chelsea 1:0 after extra-time and lifted the trophy in Carabao Cup. Captain Virgil van Dijk was the scorer of the winning goal. What is important to be mentioned, Klopp was forced to give chance to his young players. Liverpool were also successful in the FA Cup on Wednesday, when "Klopp's kindergarten" beat Southampton 3:0 at Anfield and secured quarterfinals. Lewis Koumas opened the scoring with a late first-half strike, while Jayden Danns had a memorable night after scoring a brace in front of the Kop. The injury situation is still complicate and some of the youngsters could play again. Joel Matip, Ben Doak, Curtis Jones, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Stefan Bajcetic, Thiago Alcantara, Diogo Jota and Alisson Becker are definitely sidelined, as well as Mohamed Salah. Klopp was questioned about the chances of Dominik Szoboszlai and Darwin Nunez making their comebacks this weekend, but the German simply replied "I don't know". Wataru Endo and Ryan Gravenberch suffered injuries in the League Cup final and they are both rated as doubtful. Andy Robertson did not play against Southampton due to an illness, but could recover in time for this match.

Nottingham Forest vs Liverpool Prediction:

I expect both teams to score at the City Ground. Liverpool have netted in 50 of their last 51 games in all competitions. Klopp will be missing Salah and Jota definitely, probably Darwin Nunez too. Nevertheless, the Reds have scored four against Luton Town even without the mentioned trio. Nottingham, meanwhile, are without Wood, but Taiwo Awoniyi - scorer of the only goal in this exact fixture last season, and the Reds cult hero Divock Origi could upset Kelleher.

Nottingham Forest vs Liverpool Pick: Both teams to score - Yes @ 1.64 with Pinnacle

 

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Manchester City vs Manchester United Preview:

Possible starting lineups:

Manchester City:
Ederson; Walker, Dias, Stones, Ake; Silva, Rodri, De Bruyne; Doku, Haaland, Foden

Manchester United:
Onana; Dalot, Varane, Lindelof, Amrabat; Casemiro, Mainoo; Antony, Fernandes, Garnacho; Rashford

It's time for the "Manchester derby", a derby with big tradition. The first meeting between the two teams occurred on 12 November 1881, when West Gorton – who would later become Manchester City – hosted Newton Heath – who would later become Manchester United. The game finished 3:0 in favour of the Heathens (United). At that time, the clubs were just two of many fledgling sides in the Manchester area, and the fixture had no special significance. The first league meeting between the teams came in the season 1894/95 season, when Manchester City lost 2:5 at Hyde Road. The first meeting between the clubs to take place at the highest level of English football occurred in December 1906, a 3:0 City win in a First Division match.

Manchester City are heading into the derby full of confidence after three wins in a row. They beat Brentford and Bournemouth in the Premier League and Luton Town in the FA Cup. The Citizens were impressive at Kenilworth Road, scoring six goals. Erling Haaland was the key name on the match as he found the back of the net five times. He became the first player since George Best 54 years ago to net at least five goals in one FA Cup fixture for a top-flight club. But Guardiola and his players now need to put the focus on the Premier League. They are on the second place, four point behind the league-leaders Liverpool, but have a match in hand. We should mention that City will travel to Anfield next weekend, so winning here is extremely important. The atmosphere in the squad is excellent after the good results. Guardiola has the majority of his players available, but Jack Grealish sustained another groin injury and won't play in the derby. In addition, Josko Gvardiol is rated as doubtful due to an ankle injury. Some players that were rested on midweek (Ederson, Ruben Dias, Rodri and Phil Foden) are expected to return to the starting eleven.

This is not a good season for Manchester United. They sit on the sixth position and the fans are not satisfied. The Red Devils were in series of four victories in the Premier League, beating Wolverhampton, West Ham, Aston Villa and Luton Town. The fans were expecting another victory when Fulham visited Old Trafford, but suffered a painful defeat. However, Ten Hag's men have recorded a victory in the FA Cup, advancing to the quarterfinals after narrowly beat Nottingham Forest at City Ground. The FA Cup is their only remaining chance for silverware this season, Nevertheless, securing the fourth place is even more important. According to the latest changes of the format introduced by UEFA, the fifth place could also lead to the Champions League. Ten Hag is under constant pressure, but securing a Champions League spot could buy him some time. He has some huge injury worries ahead of this match as Mason Mount, Lisandro Martinez, Luke Shaw, Aaron Wan-Bissaka, Harry Maguire, Rasmus Hojlund, Tyrell Malacia and Anthony Martial are all sidelined, while captain Bruno Fernandes is rated as doubtful.

Manchester City vs Manchester United Prediction:

The tradition is on Man United side. As of 29 October 2023, there have been 191 competitive meetings between the teams. United have won 78, City have won 60, and the remaining 53 games finished as draws. But that's a history, the current results are quite different - Man City have won five of the last six mutual games. City won 3:0 the last fixture played at Old Trafford in October. I think the Citizens are closer to the victory again. Guardiola has players able to make a difference in this derby - De Bruyne and Haaland. I expect City not only to win, but also to cover the handicap. The injury situation in United is also a reason for my tip.

Manchester City vs Manchester United Pick: Manchester City -1.5 AH @ 1.72 with Pinnacle

 

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Sheffield United vs Arsenal Preview:

Possible starting lineups:

Sheffield United
Grbic; Ahmedhodzic, Robinson, Trusty; Baldock, Hamer, Souza, McAtee, Larouci; Brereton Diaz, Brewster

Arsenal:
Raya; White, Saliba, Gabriel, Kiwior; Odegaard, Jorginho, Rice; Saka, Havertz, Martinelli

Sheffield United will welcome title pretenders Arsenal to Bramall Lane on Monday evening. The Blades remain relegation favorites as they are at the bottom of the table with only 13 points. Sheffield are big 11 points away from the safe zone. What is worse, they are in poor form. Last weekend they suffered a narrow 1:0 defeat to Wolverhampton Wanderers, while previously lost 5:0 to Brighton at home. That was the second consecutive home match they conceded five goals, after the high 5:0 loss to Aston Villa. Should Sheffield United be defeated by at least a five-goal margin to Arsenal, they would become the first team in English league history to ever lose three successive home games by that scoreline. Wilder is still missing lot of players due to injury and suspension. Seven players are not available through injury - Daniel Jebbison (illness), Cameron Archer (calf), Anis Ben Slimane (thigh), Chris Basham (ankle), John Egan (ankle), Max Lowe (ankle) and Rhys Norrington-Davies (thigh). On top of that, Mason Holgate serves the second of his three-game ban. On the positive note, Ben Brereton Diaz and George Baldock have recovered and should start here. That means either Oliver Norwood or Yasser Larouci may drop out for Brereton Diaz.

Arsenal are five points behind the leaders Liverpool after the Reds secured a last-minute victory against Nottingham Forest at City Ground on Saturday. Manchester City also won against Manchester United on Sunday, so the Gunners will remain third. However, a victory here could see them reducing the gap to only two points. The actual form is good, at least in the Premier League. Arteta's men are in series of six victories in the row, scoring 25 goals in the process. But their attacking supremacy evaporated in the Champions League fixture against Porto. The Gunners failed to score and lost 1:0 in Portugal. Of course, they are still big favorites, but must win the reverse fixture in London with two-or-more goal-difference. Of course, Arteta will ask the players to be fully focused on this match. The Spaniard has some injury worries at the moment. Oleksandr Zinchenko and Takehiro Tomiyasu are struggling with a calf injury and knock respectively. They are not ruled out completely, although their chances of returning are not so strong. Jurrien Timber is on the way of recovery, but this match comes too soon for him. Thomas Partey - who has been out since October with a serious thigh injury - is ready to play. Most probably he will start from the bench.

Sheffield United vs Arsenal Prediction:

I expect at least four goals at Bramall Lane. Arsenal are in excellent form domestically, they are in series of six victories. The Gunners have scored 25 goals in the process which is an average of more than four goals per game. Sheffield United, meanwhile, are awful defensively. They have conceded 10 goals on the last two home games, losing 5:0 to Brighton and Aston Villa. Should they be defeated by at least a five-goal margin to Arsenal, the Blades would become the first team in English league history to ever lose three successive home games by that scoreline. Nevertheless, Sheffield could also score. They managed to find the back of the net against some strong opponents like Manchester City or Manchester United. With or without Sheffield goals, I think there will be four, at least.

Sheffield United vs Arsenal Pick: Over 3.5 goals @ 2.10 with Pinnacle