Nottingham Forest finished sixteenth last season after a typically turbulent campaign, although it was hoped that Oliver Glasner would steady the ship and build a competitive team. The early signs are unclear although they they'll be bidding for a first win (and goal) at the City Ground when the champions come to town.
Arsenal are odds-on to claim a victory in this showdown, with the Gunners having secured five wins from their six matches. The one aberration was a 3-0 defeat at Brighton although they were also given a scare by Leeds last weekend. They also had to work hard to overcome Sunderland at the Stadium of Light and perhaps they can be opposed here.
Nottingham Forest v Arsenal Betting Markets
Nottingham Forest are yet to catch fire at the City Ground. They were turned over at home to Leeds in their opener before playing out a goalless draw against Tottenham. Then came a 1-0 defeat against Coventry. It wasn't in the script although perhaps they will raise their game against an Arsenal side who arrive having claimed five victories across the space of six matches.
Forest are priced at 5.00 to claim a Sunday afternoon victory, with the Midlands side therefore having a 20% chance of success according to the bookies. They won't mind the timing of this fixture considering Arsenal will have played a Tuesday night Champions League clash against Lille a few days earlier. The Gunners are also back in European action the following week.
It should also be noted that Forest's performances have been strong despite only having five points from six games. Their Expected Goals when losing 3-1 at Crystal Palace was close to three, with the Garibaldi also having a better time of things than Coventry when getting turned over. They might well be capable of causing a shock.
Arsenal are 64% likely to claim three points according to the latest odds. They have already secured five victories in the space of six matches, with Brighton beating them 3-0 a month ago. However, the champions did overcome Leeds last weekend, having won their first four encounters against Coventry, Aston Villa, Chelsea and Sunderland.
The game at the Stadium of Light was interesting. It involved David Raya saving a spot kick with the scoreline goalless, with the Gunners having only edged out Aston Villa by a single goal on the road. They're unlikely to run away with a victory here and we think they can be opposed in some shape or form.
Goals Under/Over
According to the Premier League betting sites, it's a toss-up as to whether we'll see the game go over or under the 2.5 goals line. Nottingham Forest's home matches have been seriously low-scoring thus far. Two 1-0 defeats have been accompanied by a goalless draw. We therefore have a home team with no goals at the City Ground going up against the best defensive team in the top flight.
We also know that Arsenal are not going to play expansive football, especially after an away defeat at Brighton which saw them shed three goals. The previous two away games involved one and two goals apiece. We know there's always a strong likelihood that the Gunners can achieve a shut out and their modus operandi will simply be to have their noses in front by the full-time whistle.
BTTS
BTTS Yes is trading as the outsider and that's pretty common considering that Arsenal have conceded only five goals across six matches, with three of these coming in one game. In four of the six Premier League matches played by Mikel Arteta's team, BTTS No was the outcome. The first-choice defence currently includes Gabriel and Ezri Konsa forming a strong wall in front of David Raya which will limit Nottingham Forest to only a few scoring chances.
However, Forest won't continue to draw blanks at home. And they have conceded at home to Coventry and Leeds, albeit the latter was a free-kick at the death when the game was heading towards a goalless draw. We have to know that the home side would take a morale-boosting draw from this game although they will surely aim to attack the opposition in search of goals.
The fact that Forest got an XG of nearly three at Selhurst Park indicates that they carry a big scoring threat, with Liam Delap looking to fire in the goals. There's also Morgan Gibbs-White who has scored plenty of goals during the calendar year. With the exception of that 3-0 defeat at Brighton, it has been a string of successes for Arsenal and that has meant goals.
First Goalscorer
It was Dan Ndoye who scored for Nottingham Forest when they broke the deadlock at Selhurst Park. The wide player also found the net in a 2-2 draw at Anfield, with the Swiss certainly worth considering as he looks to improve on last season. However, Liam Delap is the preferred striker and it was the former Chelsea and Ipswich man who was able to score the opening goal at Villa Park.
Morgan Gibbs-White is on penalties for Forest and the England international will be looking to double his tally for the season by finding the net here, while Arsenal have plenty of players that can weigh in with important goals.
Riccardo Calafiori is a defender who gets into great attacking positions and the Italian equalised for Arsenal against Leeds last week, with the player having also found the net in the Community Shield clash against Manchester City. It's surely a matter of time before Gabriel gets on the scoresheet and perhaps this is the moment where he gets on the end of a set piece.
Bruno Guimares has been the super sub thanks to important goals against Sunderland and Leeds, although the Brazilian may well earn a start in this clash and will be encouraged to get into shooting positions. Bukayo Saka and Martin Odegaard are other strong attacking options for the Gunners.
