Nottingham Forest vs Manchester United Prediction

A historic rivalry between two teams is reignited on Sunday at City Ground. Find out why we're backing Man U's star winger in this contest by checking out our Nottingham Forest vs. Manchester United betting picks.

The fight for survival in the Premier League is as tight as it’s ever been, and Nottingham Forest will be desperate to take advantage of Manchester United’s injury situation when they host the Red Devils on Sunday.

Entering the weekend in 18th place, Forest are tied with Everton on goal differential and will want to avoid slipping further behind a pack of five teams no more than four points ahead. As for the visitors, Man United are without star forward Marcus Rashford and lost both starting central defenders against Sevilla on Thursday. 

Can Forest take advantage of Man United’s frailties, or will the Red Devils still have enough star power to get three important points in the race for the Champions League? We dive into that and more in our Nottingham Forest vs. Manchester United picks and predictions for April 16.

Nottingham Forest vs Manchester United best odds

Nottingham Forest vs Manchester United picks and predictions

Manchester United will have some real decisions to make as they head into this match, and it’s not just in regards to team selection. The absence of Rashford puts a lot more pressure on players like Bruno Fernandes and Antony and also calls into question how they attack.

After losing Raphael Varane and Lisandro Martinez in midweek, a possible partnership of Harry Maguire and Victor Lindelof in defense could make it difficult for Erik ten Hag to deploy the high press that has made them successful this season. That could also lead to them being a bit more of a counter-attacking side on Sunday. And when Man United get out on the break, it’s usually Bruno or Casemiro finding Rashford or Antony down the wings.

Teams have been making a point of attacking down Forest’s left flank, and during their nine-match winless run, it’s been a successful tactic for their opponents. In fact, as I was looking over the tactics for Forest, I noticed that the heatmaps for their last nine opponents were tilting the pitch quite heavily as their best attacks seemed to come from that side.

Given this data, I would typically look at the primary attacker on the right side of their opponent to either score or assist. In this case, that would be Antony. 

Antony has taken on more of an attacking role over the past two matches. In fact, even if you include the Brentford match in which Rashford was injured, the right-sided winger has attempted 12 shots over three matches.

While some of them have been laughable, he did hit the post against Sevilla on a shot that should have made it a 3-0 scoreline and ended the match. With Rashford out and Luke Shaw either missing the match or likely filling in at center back, I expect we will see the Red Devils pushing down their right flank even more on Sunday.

Given that Antony loves to shoot on sight and the fact that Forest are so weak on their left, it’s impossible for me to pass up Antony taking three or more shots at +100.

My best bet: Antony Over 2.5 shots (+100 at bet365)

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Nottingham Forest vs Manchester United side analysis

Those aforementioned question marks arise because Forest have quite a few injury concerns of their own. Moussa Niakhate and Cheikhou Kouyate both suffered hamstring injuries in their defeat to Aston Villa a week ago, and along with injuries to Renan Lodi, Serge Aurier, and Willy Boly, they are now without four of their top five first-choice defenders.

For all their struggles this season, Forest have been much better at home than away. They’ve lost just twice in their last 14 matches at home in all competitions, and they’ve gone unbeaten in 10 of 11 in the Premier League at City Ground. However, they haven't kept a clean sheet in nine straight and haven’t scored against Man United in their last three meetings.

Man United will get Casemiro back from suspension to help with their defensive absences, but Rashford and Alejandro Garnacho are both unavailable down their left. The Red Devils are heavily favored on the road and have kept five clean sheets in their last seven Premier League matches, but their last four matches away have seen them outscored 12-4 including 9-0 in the last two.

I could see Man United winning this match just as easily as I could see Forest stealing a result, so I can’t comfortably recommend any action on the three-way line.

Nottingham Forest vs Manchester United Over/Under analysis

As for the total, I think the missing players could actually lead to the Over cashing here. Not only have Forest been unable to keep teams off the score sheet, but they also allowed Wolves to score last time out on a late equalizer. 

For the visitors, Man United’s 14 away fixtures have evenly gone Over and Under the 2.5 line. But with Maguire possibly in defense, they’re going to be left vulnerable on the break. Man United are also excellent at drawing and converting penalties, and no team has conceded more than Forest this year.

The Over 2.5 is my lean here. Even without Rashford, the visitors possess plenty of attacking power. Unlike their match against Man City, I think Forest will believe they can get a win and will not bunker as much. That should lend to more up-and-down action and more opportunities to score.

Nottingham Forest vs Manchester United game info

Nottingham Forest vs Manchester United key injuries

Nottingham Forest: Cheikhou Kouyate M (Out), Chris Wood F (Out), Renan Lodi D (Out), Moussa Niakhate D (Out).
Manchester United: Lisandro Martinez D (Out), Marcus Rashford F (Out), Raphael Varane D (Out), Luke Shaw D (Probable).

Nottingham Forest vs Manchester United recent form

Nottingham Forest vs Manchester United weather

Fans and players will be happy to see plenty of sunshine when they take the pitch on Sunday. Temperatures will be near 60 and there will be no chance of rain on the day.