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Premier League
team-logoNottingham Forest
City Ground, Nottingham
team-logoChelsea
Pranav Venkatesh

Nottingham Forest vs Chelsea Preview: Team News, H2H, early injury news, probable lineups, tickets, odds and more

The Premier League action returns after the international break as struggling Nottingham Forest host flying Chelsea.

After yet another eventful international break, Premier League action is back. Gameweek eight opens at the City Ground on Saturday lunchtime as Nottingham Forest host Chelsea.

Ange Postecoglou took charge of the club just over a month ago and is yet to taste victory, and he even set up an unwanted 100-year-old record. Between thrashings and narrow losses and frustrating draws, he tasted everything else. His side are playing attractive football, but it's come at a cost as they failed to win another game this season. It mirrors his previous season at Tottenham, where his side lost games all too easily. At Forest, Postecoglou deployed a three at the back system and tried to play narrowly to maximise the central creativity. This goes completely against the squad available at his disposal. If Postecoglou cannot turn around a nine-game winless run against Chelsea on the weekend, he may leave his friend and owner, Evangelos Marinakis, with no choice but to cut his losses. By the way things are going, he might not have a second season to win things at the City Ground.

Enzo Maresca knew he was getting a red card when he joined his players to celebrate the epic 96th-minute winner from Estevao against Liverpool. It was still worth the risk for the Italian, as it meant more than just three points against the defending champions. The Italian will serve a one-match ban and also part ways with a massive fine. It was the kind of result that could spark new life into their campaign, which had hit a stumbling block. The young squad will now be brimming with confidence to conquer the world again. With a favourable run of fixtures coming up, the Blues will be eager to build consistency and mount a title challenge in the nascent Premier League season.

READ MORE: Premier League 2025/26 tickets: £51 tickets, October fixtures, resale & more

Nottingham Forest vs Chelsea last-minute tickets: How to buy

Despite the poor form, the City Ground will be optimistic when their side takes to the field. Our favourite reseller, StubHub, will help you grab tickets even at the last minute to catch all the action live from the ground.

How to watch Nottingham Forest vs Chelsea online - TV channels & live streams

The game is telecast on TNT Sports 1 and TNT Sports Ultimate for the fans in the UK. Discovery+ will live-stream the game. For fans in the US, USA Network will air the game. It can be streamed on our favourite streaming service, Fubo, in the US and Canada.

READ MORE: How to get a five-day free pass with Fubo

How to watch Nottingham Forest vs Chelsea worldwide

Here is how you can watch Nottingham Forest vs Chelsea worldwide.

Country/RegionBroadcaster
CanadaFubo
AustraliaStan Sport
IndiaStar Sports
MENAbeIN Sports
South AmericaESPN / Disney+
AfricaSuperSport

How to watch anywhere with a VPN

If you are abroad, you may need to use a virtual private network (VPN) in order to watch games using your usual streaming service. A VPN, such as NordVPN, allows you to establish a secure connection online when streaming. If you are not sure which VPN to use, check out GOAL's guide to the best VPNs for streaming sports.

Nottingham Forest vs Chelsea: Key Matchups

Elliot Anderson vs Moises Caicedo: Anderson is one of the bright spots of Forest's dull start to the season. The English international has gone from strength to strength when it comes to ball carrying and ball winning. He will face Caicedo in unbelievable form. The Ecuadorian is ready to punish the slightest bit of space afforded with his lethal ball striking. The pair will be breathing down each other's necks throughout the game.

Neco Williams vs Pedro Neto: The Welsh wingback has a knack for final third output and will push deep into the opposition half. Ready to pounce on the space he vacates will be Neto, who has been hot and cold this season so far. With Estevao pushing for his place, he will be eying an impressive performance to prove his worth.

Morgan Gibbs-White vs Marc Cucurella: Gibbs-White had a pretty slow start to the season by his standards. The English attacker who thrived last season alongside Anthony Elanga and Callum Hudson-Odoi is playing with new forwards and is taking time to build synergy. He will have the freedom to exploit Chelsea's backline by drifting around and orchestrating counters. Cucurella, who was solid against Mohamed Salah previously, will be keen to repeat his heroics against Gibbs-White.

Nottingham Forest vs Chelsea Prediction

It's never easy to hit the stride straight after an international break. But expect Chelsea to call the shots against a reeling Nottingham, who will be struggling for consistency under Postecoglou. The Blues have enough firepower to negate the opposition and take all three points back to London, putting more pressure on the Australian manager.

GOAL's Prediction: Nottingham Forest 1-3 Chelsea

Nottingham Forest vs Chelsea Odds

Chelsea enter the game as strong favourites with odds in their favour at 19/20. Nottingham can reward the punters well with a draw priced at 14/5 and their win priced at 11/4. 

Nottingham Forest vs Chelsea kick-off time

crest
Premier League - Premier League
City Ground, Nottingham

The City Ground will host the game between Nottingham Forest vs Chelsea on Saturday, October 18 at 12:30 BST / 13:30 CET / 07:30 ET.

Nottingham Forest vs Chelsea Team news & squads

Nottingham Forest vs Chelsea lineups

Nottingham ForestHome team crest

5-3-2

Formation

4-2-3-1

Home team crestCHE
26
M. Sels
3
N. Williams
5
Murillo
31
N. Milenkovic
35
O. Zinchenko
4
Morato
12
D. Luiz
6
I. Sangare
8
E. Anderson
9
T. Awoniyi
10
C
M. Gibbs-White
1
R. Sanchez
34
J. Acheampong
23
T. Chalobah
3
M. Cucurella
24
C
R. James
27
M. Gusto
45
R. Lavia
49
A. Garnacho
17
A. Santos
7
P. Neto
20
J. Pedro

4-2-3-1

CHEAway team crest

NFO
-Line up

Substitutes

Manager

  • A. Postecoglou

CHE
-Line up

Substitutes

Manager

  • W. Caballero

Injuries and Suspended players

Injuries and Suspensions

Injuries and Suspensions

Nottingham Forest team news

Newcastle United v Nottingham Forest - Premier LeagueGetty Images

Postecoglou will not stray away from his back three to prioritise defence and keep Chelsea at bay. He is without Ola Aina, who injured his hamstring a month ago. Oleksandr Zinchenko is ruled out of the game along with Douglaz Luiz. Murillo will be hoping to start ahead of Morato. The manager has plenty of selection headaches in attack and midfield. Ibrahim Sangare could replace Ryan Yates to add more steel in the middle. He will be tempted to give the energetic Igor Jesus a start ahead of Chris Wood. 

Predicted Lineup: Sels; Cunha, Milenkovic, Murillo; Savona, Sangare, Anderson, Williams; Gibbs-White, Hudson-Odoi; Jesus

Chelsea team news

Chelsea v Liverpool - Premier LeagueGetty Images

Cole Palmer is ruled out for six weeks, according to Maresca, as the English international aims to recover fully before taking to the pitch. Enzo Fernandez and Reece James picked up minor injuries on national duty but should be fine for the weekend. The manager also shed doubts on the availability of Caiedo, Enzo Fernandez and Neto. Trevoh Chalobah should be back in the lineup after serving a one-match suspension to start alongside the impressive Josh Acheampong. Match winner Estevao and Romeo Lavia, who had an impactful cameo against Liverpool, will be in contention for starts.

Predicted Lineup: Sanchez; James, Acheampong, Chalobah, Cucurella; Lavia, Caicedo; Estevao, Fernandez, Neto; Pedro

Form

NFO
-Form

Goal Scored (Conceded)
5/9
Games over 2.5 goals
2/5
Both teams scored
3/5

CHE
-Form

Goal Scored (Conceded)
7/7
Games over 2.5 goals
4/5
Both teams scored
4/5

Head-to-Head Record

NFO

Last 5 matches

CHE

1

Win

2

Draws

2

Wins

6

Goals scored

7
Games over 2.5 goals
2/5
Both teams scored
3/5

The Last Meeting

These sides met recently on the final day of the 2024/25 campaign. With European spots on the line, they played a nervous first half without any goals. In the second half, Levi Colwill tapped into an empty net after Neto crossed a loose ball across the face of the goal. It turned out to be the match-winner as Chelsea saw out the game. Both sides secured European football after the final whistle, courtesy of other results going their way. 

Standings

Useful links

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Frequently asked questions

Currently, the most cost efficient package looks to be picking up a TV deal through Virgin Media or EE TV.

Existing TV or broadband customers can add TNT Sports to Virgin Media for £12 per month and Sky Sports for £31.75 per month, adding on Amazon Prime Video for the few weeks in the season when they show football which is £8.99 per month.

EE TV (formerly BT TV) also provide their Big Sport deal which includes TNT Sports and Sky Sports via NOW TV, for £45 per month, which is available for existing broadband customers, with the addition of Amazon Prime Video for the few weeks in the season when they show football which is £8.99 per month.

However, when it comes to bang for your buck, if you’re wanting to spend a little less, then the Complete Sky Sports package from an additional £22 per month on top of your current Sky TV deal is the best option, giving you over 128 games across a single season.

A number of broadcasters have the rights to stream and show highlights on the television, with Match of the Day on the BBC being the most notable of these. Every weekend the BBC show highlights airs on both Saturday and Sunday from around 10.30pm, in the company of Gary Lineker and fellow ex-professionals.

Sky Sports offer highlights slightly earlier, with their packages getting underway from around 7.00pm, while TNT Sports also offer highlights and goals from each and every game on the top flight online too.

Yes. TNT Sports is the new name for what was once known as BT Sport, in both the UK and Ireland. Along with appearing on the same channels as it always has, TNT Sports provides four live sporting channels, with red-button and digital channels, Eurosports channels, TNT Sports Ultimate (4K), and Box Office, depending on what package and provider you opt to go with.

Besides watching matches through the designated TV package your subscription is assigned to, some offer ways to live stream and tune in to the big game through a variety of ways. For games on TNT Sports, the discovery+ Premium app is available on the usual array of live stream options, including on Smart TVs mobile phone, PC, laptop and Mac, as well as video games consoles, Apple and Android devices too. Similarly, if you are using NOW TV for Sky Sports, you can login on a range of devices to keep track of the scores.

Yes. Standard coverage of TNT Sports is available to BT broadband customers.

NBC, Peacock, and USA Network currently have the rights to broadcast the English Premier League in the United States. Matches are available across two of their TV channels, NBC Sports and USA Network, as well as their dedicated streaming service Peacock.

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