Can Nottingham Forest halt Manchester City’s winning streak?

Manchester City vs Nottingham Forest - 23/09/2023

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Premier League frontrunners Manchester City will be looking to maintain their 100% record in 2023-24 when Nottingham Forest visit the Etihad Stadium on Saturday.

With five matches in the books, Pep Guardiola’s side find themselves at the summit of the table – two points clear of Tottenham Hotspur, Liverpool and Arsenal.

As for Nottingham Forest, they occupy eighth place in the standings. Although the Tricky Trees trail Man City by eight points, they have made a decent start to the season.

Manchester City came from behind to beat Red Star Belgrade 3-1 in the Champions League on Wednesday, with Julain Alvarez bagging a brace.

Guarduiola’s men racked up 76% possession and 37 shots on home soil, while Red Star Belgrade managed just two attempts on target throughout the contest.

In the Premier League, Man City have secured five successive victories this season, scoring 14 goals while conceding on just three occasions.

Having scored over 2.5 goals in three of their five league outings this term, the reigning champions will be confident dispatching Nottingham Forest.

Meanwhile, Forest served up a 1-1 draw with Burnley last time out, with Callum Hudson-Odoi scoring an incredible long-range strike on his debut for his new club.

Steve Cooper’s side started their campaign with a 2-1 defeat to Arsenal before beating Sheffield United by the same scoreline, with a 3-2 loss against Manchester United following those results.

However, the Tricky Trees head into Saturday’s showdown on a two-game unbeaten streak, having defeated Chelsea 1-0 before the international break.

Given that Forest made a terrible start to the previous campaign, Cooper can take plenty of positives from his team’s early-season performances this time around.

Head-to-head: Man City thrashed Forest 6-0 at the Etihad last season, although Cooper’s men held City to a 1-1 draw in the reverse fixture back in February.

It is also worth noting that Forest have managed to win just one of their previous seven meetings with City across all competitions.

Team news: Kevin De Bruyne and Bernardo Silva are injured for Man City, while Jack Grealish, Mateo Kovacic and John Stones are doubts.

As for Nottingham Forest, there are question marks over the fitness and availability of Danilo, Serge Aurier, Willy Boly and Wayne Hennessey.

Although Forest frustrated City at the City Ground last season, Guardiola’s men are expected to flex their muscles on Saturday.

Forebet predicts that Manchester City will cruise to a comfortable victory at the Etihad, scoring over 3.5 goals on their way dispatching Nottingham Forest.

Home team
Away team

Probability %

1X2

Pred

Correct score

Avg. goals

Weather conditions

Coef.

Score

Live
coef.

EPL

Manchester City Nottingham Forest 23/09/2023 16:00

532522

1

4 - 1

3.46

14°

1.14

1.14 7.50 19.00 no no no

FT

2 - 0(2 - 0)

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