Nottingham Forest v Manchester United predictions, odds and betting tips: Feisty Forest can stop their run of home defeats

Paddy Power are offering £40 in free bets on the Nottingham Forest v Manchester United fixture. You can grab your free bet here. We’ve included instructions on how to grab your offer later on in this article.

Where to watch Nottingham Forest v Manchester United

You can watch Nottingham Forest v Manchester United in the Premier League on Saturday, live on Sky Sports Main Event and Sky Sports Premier League at 5.30pm.

Match prediction & best bet

Draw
1pt 13-5 bet365, Betfair, Hills

You can bet on Nottingham Forest v Manchester United here and get £40 in free bets with Paddy Power

Nottingham Forest v Manchester United odds

Nottingham Forest  23-10
Manchester United 23-20
Draw 13-5

Odds correct at time of publishing

Nottingham Forest v Manchester United team news

Nottingham Forest
Willy Boly is available after suspension but Ibrahim Sangare serves a one-match ban. Felipe, Serge Aurier and Taiwo Awoniyi are injured.

Manchester United
Luke Shaw, Sofyan Amrabat and Anthony Martial are doubts and Amad Diallo, Tyrell Malacia, Harry Maguire, Victor Lindelof, Casemiro, Mason Mount and Lisandro Martinez miss out.

Nottingham Forest v Manchester United predictions

Manchester United went on a run of 16 games without a Premier League draw in the first fourth months of the season, but they shared the spoils in a 0-0 draw at Liverpool earlier this month and might have to accept a point against Nottingham Forest at the City Ground.

The campaign has been a roller-coaster ride for United manager Erik ten Hag, who has experienced a few too many downs and not enough highs.

And United's lack of consistency is illustrated by the fact that they have registered back-to-back league wins on just two occasions this season.

Ten Hag was under massive pressure before Tuesday's fixture at home to Aston Villa and his job was on the line after the Villans had opened up a two-nil half-time lead.

However, after going nine halves of football without scoring, United produced a superb second-half display to run out 3-2 winners and climb to seventh in the table.

With changes taking place on the ownership front it seems likely that United will be active in the January window, but they sit six points adrift of the top four and cannot afford to drop points at the City Ground, where they have been victorious on their last four visits.

Ten Hag is desperate for his team to put together a run of good form but he remains constrained by injuries with 11 senior players either doubtful or out of contention on Saturday.

Scope for rotation looks limited and if energy levels are not quite as high as they were against Villa, United may find it tough to get the job done.

Forest are on a run of four successive home defeats but their supporters were re-energised by Tuesday's 3-1 victory at Newcastle, which brought an end to a seven-match winless sequence.

A lot of Forest fans were sad to see Steve Cooper depart but their scepticism over replacement head coach Nuno Espirito Santo will soon disappear if the Tyneside triumph is a sign of things to come.

The Tricky Trees travelled to Newcastle with a lack of confidence and were further tested by falling behind to Alexander Isak's 23rd-minute penalty. But they responded superbly with Chris Wood helping himself to hat-trick against his former employers.

Wood was often a substitute in the earlier months of the season but seems to have the full faith of Nuno and his physical attributes present a challenge to United's injury-hit defence.

Deploying a powerful centre-forward affords Forest the option of playing more directly on occasions, although their main method of attack will be to use the pace of attackers Callum Hudson-Odoi and Anthony Elanga.

There should be enough talent among that front three to pull Forest clear of the drop zone but it might not be quite enough to overcome United, who will be harder to beat after their midweek triumph.

Key stat

Manchester United have drawn two of their last four away fixtures.

Probable teams

Nottingham Forest (4-2-3-1): Turner; Montiel, Niakhate, Murillo, Aina; Danilo, Yates; Elanga, Gibbs-White, Hudson-Odoi; Wood.
Subs: Vlachodimos, Boly, Toffolo, Tavares, Worrall, Mangala, Williams, Kouyate, Dominguez, Origi.

Manchester United (4-2-3-1): Onana; Wan-Bissaka, Varane, Evans, Dalot; McTominay, Eriksen; Garnacho, Fernandes, Rashford; Hojland.
Subs: Bayindir, Mainoo, Reguilon, Antony, Pellistri, Van de Beek, Gore, Mejbri, Kambwala.

Inside info

Nottingham Forest

Star man Anthony Elanga
Top scorer Chris Wood
Penalty taker Morgan Gibbs-White
Card magnet Orel Mangala
Assist ace Anthony Elanga
Set-piece aerial threat Chris Wood

Manchester United

Star man Bruno Fernandes
Top scorer Scott McTominay
Penalty taker Bruno Fernandes/Marcus Rashford
Card magnet Bruno Fernandes
Assist ace Bruno Fernandes
Set-piece aerial threat Raphael Varane

Nottingham Forest v Manchester United bet builder predictions

Nottingham Forest v Man Utd to draw
Manchester United produced a great fightback to defeat Aston Villa on Boxing Day but they might have to settle for a draw against Nottingham Forest, who are responding well since a change of manager.

Under 2.5 goals
United's last three Premier League away games have generated a total of three goals and the low-scoring theme may continue at the City Ground.

Bruno Fernandes to be carded
Bruno Fernandes has looked an angry man on several occasions this season and may add to his tally of seven yellow cards in 18 league appearances.

Pays out at 15-1 with Paddy Power

Grab a £40 Paddy Power Premier League free bet on Nottingham Forest v Manchester United

We’ve already mentioned that Paddy Power are offering a £40 free bet for Nottingham Forest v Manchester United.

Well, you can follow these simple steps outlined below to grab your £40 free bet to place on Nottingham Forest v Manchester United in the Premier League. It's fast, secure and straightforward.

1. Head over to Paddy Power through this link and click the Join button on their homepage
2. Create your username and password
3. Make a deposit of £10 or more using a card & place a bet on a sportsbook market with odds of 1-2 or greater
4. You will be rewarded with £40 of free bet tokens added to your balance 

Paddy Power Premier League 2023 betting sign-up offer: terms and conditions

It's worth taking a few minutes to read through the terms and conditions associated with the new player promotion before signing up. Doing so will help you get a better grasp of the details of this Premier League betting offer and what's expected of you as a new player.

• New UK & ROI customers only
• Minimum deposit £10 bet at minimum odds of 1-2 to qualify 
• Get £40 in free bets, valid for 30 days
• SMS verification required
• Bets placed on greyhound racing markets are excluded.
• Only deposits via cards will qualify

Click for free bets and betting offers from the Racing Post

Commercial notice: This article contains affiliate links. Offers are handpicked and come from operators our experts have first-hand experience of. Opening an account via one of these links will earn revenue for the Racing Post, which will be used to continue producing our award-winning coverage of horseracing and sports betting.