Preview: Nottingham Forest vs. Luton Town - prediction, team news, lineups

Two clubs that could lone beryllium separated by 1 spot successful the 2023-24 Premier League table reunite successful Saturday's FA Cup third-round battle, wherever Nottingham Forest quadrate up to Luton Town astatine the City Ground.

While the Tricky Trees person lone been looking upwards since narrowly avoiding relegation past term, the Hatters are warring an uphill conflict to adjacent salvage their Championship presumption for 2025-26 and are reportedly acceptable for a alteration successful the dugout.

Match preview

© Imago

Threatening to repetition the Leicester City occurrence of 2015-16, Nuno Espirito Santo's scintillating Forest broadside whitethorn precise good person forced their mode into the Premier League rubric speech erstwhile they made it six wins connected the rotation astatine their manager's erstwhile stomping crushed connected Monday.

Santo was not the lone Garibaldi antheral returning to look his aged employers astatine Wolverhampton Wanderers' Molineux base, wherever Morgan Gibbs-White responded to the location crowd's jeers with a seventh-minute opener earlier Chris Wood and Taiwo Awoniyi made the scoreline much emphatic.

Leaving Chelsea, Newcastle United and Manchester City successful their wake, Forest person already deed the 40-point people successful the apical formation this play and are lone down second-placed Arsenal connected extremity difference, though runaway leaders Liverpool clasp a six-point vantage astatine the summit with a crippled successful hand.

Champions League shot astatine the City Ground is simply a chiseled anticipation for 2025-26, but successful Forest's existent fabulous form, Santo's men should not beryllium washing their hands of the FA Cup, a tourney that the nine past won successful 1959 and past reached the last successful backmost successful 1991.

The Tricky Trees person not emerged victorious from immoderate of their past 5 FA Cup showdowns connected location territory, but specified humanities failures should airy into insignificance erstwhile their ongoing six-game winning tally and four-match series of successive cleanable sheets is taken into account.

© Imago

A specified six points was the quality betwixt Forest staying up and Luton being sent down to the 2nd tier past season, but a mammoth 38 places present abstracted the Champions League-chasing hosts and relegation-threatened Hatters successful the English shot pyramid.

Rather than situation for an contiguous promotion backmost to the large time, Rob Edwards's men person superior enactment to bash to debar the driblet to League One for 2025-26 and caput to the City Ground connected the backmost of a disheartening 4th consecutive decision successful the Championship.

After being seen disconnected by Bristol City, Swansea City and Norwich City, the Hatters succumbed to a 2-1 decision to Queens Park Rangers successful Monday's Loftus Road battle, leaving them 20th successful the table and lone 2 points up of 22nd-placed Hull City and 23rd-placed Cardiff City, who person a crippled successful hand.

Whether Edwards is inactive successful power of the reins for Saturday's crippled is simply a taxable of uncertainty, arsenic reports person claimed that the 42-year-old is acceptable to permission Luton by communal consent, perchance further disrupting their preparations for their daunting third-round assignment.

Not since the 2019-20 run person the Hatters mislaid astatine this signifier of the FA Cup, though, and they held Forest to a brace of stalemates successful the 2023-24 Premier League campaign, different affirmative omen for what whitethorn beryllium the archetypal crippled of the post-Edwards era.

Nottingham Forest signifier (all competitions):

Luton Town signifier (all competitions):

Team News

© Imago

Key to Forest's occurrence successful 2024-25 has been a near-empty attraction country for astir of the campaign, and Santo is lone expected to beryllium missing semipermanent absentees Danilo (ankle) and Ibrahim Sangare (hamstring) for Saturday's conflict with the Hatters.

Changes volition surely beryllium successful store for the hosts, whose onslaught should beryllium spearheaded by Awoniyi aft the ex-Liverpool antheral opened his Premier League relationship for the play astatine Molineux; 12-goal Wood should truthful bask a hard-earned rest.

Santo whitethorn besides beryllium tempted to commencement gigantic goalkeeper Carlos Miguel, the 6ft 8in Brazilian who has lone featured successful the EFL Cup for the Tricky Trees truthful far, arsenic good arsenic fringe trio Willy Boly, James Ward-Prowse and Ramon Sosa.

Meanwhile, Luton are somewhat successful limbo portion Edwards's departure is yet to beryllium formalised, but whoever takes complaint of Saturday's crippled volition beryllium without Reece Burke (hip), Teden Mengi (knee), Alfie Doughty (knock), Shandon Baptiste (calf) and skipper Tom Lockyer.

The second was making large strides successful his betterment from his distressing cardiac arrest, lone to endure an ankle wounded successful grooming past month, but the visitors did not prime up immoderate caller concerns successful their decision to QPR.

Regular fig 9 Elijah Adebayo was demoted to the seat for that contention - conscionable the 3rd Championship crippled this play helium has failed to commencement - but the 6ft 4in striker ought to travel backmost successful for Saturday's tie, either successful spot of oregon alongside Carlton Morris.

Nottingham Forest imaginable starting lineup:
Miguel; Aina, Boly, Morato, Moreno; Yates, Anderson; Jota, Ward-Prowse, Sosa; Awoniyi

We say: Nottingham Forest 2-0 Luton Town

It volition beryllium fascinating to spot whether Santo opts to spell beardown oregon rotate his resources for the sojourn of Luton, but careless of what squad Forest field, Luton should beryllium heading location disappointed.

ID:562355:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:collect12803:

Previews by email

Click here to get Sports Mole's regular email of previews and predictions for each large game!