Two fierce East Midlands rivals kick off Week 9 of this season’s Premier League when Leicester City entertain Nottingham Forest on Friday night.
Foxes boss Steve Cooper has presided over two back-to-back wins to ease his new side’s relegation fears, but now he is tasked with beating the side who won promotion to England’s top flight in 2022 before being fired a little over a year later.
Forest are without manager Nuno Espirito Santo on the touchline due to suspension, but did not let that absence distract them on Monday evening as they beat Crystal Palace 1-0. They have lost just once in eight league games so far in the 2024/25 season.
here it is 90 minutes preview of the latest installment of their local rivalry.
Leicester vs Nottingham Forest head to head record (last five games)
Current form (all competitions)
|
Leicester |
Nottingham Forest |
|---|---|
|
Southampton 2-3 Leicester – 19/10/24 |
Nottingham Forest 1-0 Crystal Palace – 21/01/24 |
|
Leicester 1-0 Bournemouth – 24/10/05 |
Chelsea 1-1 Nottingham Forest – 24/10/06 |
|
Arsenal 4-2 Leicester – 28/09/24 |
Nottingham Forest 0-1 Fulham – 28/09/24 |
|
Walsall 0-0 (0-3p) Leicester – 24/09/24 |
Brighton 2-2 Nottingham Forest – 22/09/24 |
|
Leicester 1-1 Everton – 21/09/24 |
Liverpool 0-1 Nottingham Forest – 14/09/24 |
|
country |
TV channel/live broadcast |
|---|---|
|
united kingdom |
Sky Go UK, NOW, SKY GO Extra, Sky Sports Main Event, Sky Sports Premier League, Sky Ultra HD |
|
united states |
fuboTV, nbcsports.com, NBC Sports App, UNIVERSO NOW, Telemundo Deportes En Vivo, USA Network, UNIVERSO, SiriusXM FC |
|
canada |
fuboTV Canada, Fubo Sports Network Canada |
Leicester have suffered a couple of physical setbacks ahead of Friday night’s clash with their local rivals.
Jannik Vestergaard has completed 90 minutes in Denmark’s last four games but has not played for the Foxes since August and is expected to be out for a week or so. Jakub Stolarczyk, Patson Daka and Hamza Choudhury remain unavailable.
Harry Winks, Abdul Fatawu and Jordan Ayew made key contributions from the bench in the 3-2 win at Southampton and could be rewarded with the starting XI.
Predicted Leicester vs Nottingham Forest line-up (4-2-3-1): Hermansen; Justin, Phase, Okoli, Christiansen; Wink, Didi; Buonanotte, Ayew, Redemption; Vardy.
It’s a quick turnaround for foresthaving only played on Monday night when they earned a win over Palace thanks to Chris Wood’s second-half goal.
Morgan Gibbs-White is still being assessed day-to-day but may not be risked, meaning he could sit out the derby alongside long-term absentees Danilo and Ibrahim Sangare. If the England international does not play, Elliot Anderson is likely to continue in the number 10 role flanked by wingers Anthony Elanga and Callum Hudson-Odoi.
Nottingham Forest predicted line-up against Leicester (4-2-3-1): Salts; Aina, Milenkovic, Murillo, Moreno; Yates, Ward-Prowse; Elanga, Anderson, Hudson-Odoi; wood
Rivalries often provide spectacular entertainment in the city Premier League and there could be plenty of fireworks when Leicester and Forest clash on Friday night.
The Foxes’ season has been ignited with two league wins on the bounce and manager Cooper will be desperate not to be on the receiving end of a defeat against his former employers.
However, Forest have already proved more than tough opposition away from home for the likes LiverpoolBrighton & Hove Albion and Chelsea and will not face their local foes. There will be plenty of entertainment, but the spoils can be shared at full time.
