Chelsea FC vs Nottingham Forest FC, English Premier League 2024-25, Today Match Prediction

Chelsea FC vs Nottingham Forest FC Match Prediction & Analysis

Chelsea sported a revamped 11 in their midweek Conference League affair against Gent. But the outcome remained the same, as goals came thick and fast by Veiga, Neto, Dewsbury-Hall and Nkunku. This proves the squad depth that Maresca possesse who happen to be strong favourites to claim this silverware. 

Despite many of the players such as Palmer, Fofana, Sancho, Jackson not being at the Italian’s disposal, the Blues found this to be a cake walk. One thing that is guaranteed is Forest will surely be expecting freshness in West London on Sunday. 

Forest need a correction after last week’s mishap against Fulham. We know they can get a result against a big club and therefore can’t be written off. The Reds won this exact fixture 1-0 last season. Only once have they won consecutive away league games against Chelsea, doing so on their first two visits to Stamford Bridge in 1907 and 1908. This gives Nuno’s men a good record to achieve. 

Head-to-Head Record : Both teams have played each other 74 times. The Blues have won 29 of those encounters, the Reds have won 22 of those with 23 games ending in a stalemate. 

Current Standings : Chelsea sit in a Champions league spot on 4th with 13 points from 6 games. Nottingham Forest sit 10th with 9 points. 

TEAMS PREVIEW

Chelsea FC Preview

Chelsea have won just one of their four Premier League meetings with Nottingham Forest since the latter returned to the top-flight in 2022 (D2, L1). The Blues have won 9 of their previous 11 games (D1, L1), netting at least twice in 8 of those 9 games. Chelsea are top scorers in the league this season (15) and also possess the highest shot conversion rate (20.3%). We know what to expect when Chelsea take center stage. Its goals, goals, goals galore. No side’s Premier League games have produced more goals than Chelsea’s so far this season (22- F15, A7) while Forest have seen the fewest (11 - F6, A5). 

Players to watch out for 

Jadon Sancho has provided an assist in all three of his Premier League games so far for Chelsea, already matching his best assist total in a single campaign in the competition (3 in 2021-22 and 2022-23). If Sancho does get his fourth consecutive assist, he will match Cesc Fabregas for Chelsea, and Chris Waddle’s record for Sunderland. 

Since Palmer’s debut for Chelsea last September which resulted in a home defeat against Forest, he has been involved in more Premier League goals than any other player (43 - 28 goals, 15 assists). He’s averaging a goal or assist every 73 minutes in that time, the best of any Chelsea player in the competition’s history. 

Stats That Matter

Chelsea are ranked 6th in ball possession with 54.8% averaging 12.3 shots per game. The Blues score an average of 2.50 goals per match with a shooting accuracy of 45%. Cole Palmer is the top scorer with 6 goals this season. Nicolas Jackson has also scored 4 goals in the 6 matches played so far. The team has an average of 4.2 saves per game, the 6th best in the season. They have conceded an average of 1.17 goals per match.

Injury list - Reece James and Omari Kellyman will both miss out with hamstring injuries. 

Chelsea Probable Starting Lineup - Sanchez (GK), Cucurella, Collwell, Fofana, Gusto (DEF), Caicedo, Fernandez, Sancho, Madueke, Palmer (MID), Jackson (FWD).

Nottingham Forest FC Preview

Since last season, no team has lost more away fixtures in London than Nottingham forest (10). They’ve lost each of their last 4 in the capital, conceding 3+ goals each time. Forest have earned 13 points from their previous 5 away games (W4, D1), as many as they had in their previous 27 (W2, D7, L18). They’re looking to go unbeaten in 6 consecutive top-flight away games for the first time since February-November 1995 (12).

Forest like Man City and Arsenal were unbeaten in the league this season, until last week. Although they faced their first setback, all is not ugly for the Reds. No side has faced fewer shots on target in the Premier League this season than Nottingham Forest (18, level with Man City). Their record of facing an average of 3 shots per game is their lowest on record in a single campaign. 

Players to watch out for 

Forest new signing, James Ward-Prowse has been involved in four goals in his last five Premier League starts against Chelsea (2 goals, 2 assists), netting the winner with Southampton in 2023.

Stats That Matter 

Nottingham Forest are ranked third worst in ball possession with 40% averaging 12.2 shots per game. The Tricky Trees score an average of 1 goal per match with a shooting accuracy of 38%. Chris Wood is the top scorer with 3 goals this season. Callum Hudson-Odoi and Ramon Sosa have also scored 1 goal each in the 6 matches played so far. The team has an average of 2 saves per game, the worst in the season. They have conceded an average of 0.83 goals per match.

Injury list - Danilo and Ibrahim Sangare are set to miss out on a trip to West London. 

Nottingham Forest Probable Starting Lineup -  M.Sels (GK), Aina, Milenkovic, Murillo, Moreno (DEF), Andersen, Ward-Prowse, Yates, Dominguez (MID), Awoniyi, Wood (FWD).

CHELSEA FC vs NOTTINGHAM FOREST FC
Winning Prediction

This is proving to be a game of attack and defence. Chelsea have been a joy to watch this season. Yes, they have been porous at the back but they’re lethal going forward. There’s been great link up play which is slowly but surely being established amongst the youngsters. De Bryune was Chelsea’s getaway star to City, but the same can be said about Cole Palmer who is City’s getaway star to Chelsea. 

Nottingham Forest, meanwhile, are a clever side who break on the counter, will surely find ways to exploit the Blues backline. The Reds are a difficult team to beat, but Chelsea who have scored 17 goals in 5 matches will try to seal victory and stay in contention for top 4. 

Chelsea to Win (2-1)

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