Premier League | Gameweek 34

May 1, 2025 at 7.30pm UK

The City Ground

Nott'm Forest vs Brentford

Match preview

The reason for the postponement was that Forest were in the FA Cup semi-finals on Sunday, losing 2-0 to Manchester City at Wembley.

After Josko Gvardiol's header early in the second half, it looked as if the game was over for Forest, who went behind inside two minutes, but Nuno Espirito Santo's men hit the post three times and Anthony Elanga spurned a golden opportunity after the break in a game that could easily have gone the other way.

The focus will now be solely on securing an unlikely Champions League place for Forest, who return to the competition more than four decades after their last appearance, and they are well placed after a crucial 2-1 win away to Tottenham Hotspur in their last league outing.

Few games will epitomise the Nuno era better than that win in north London, as Forest had just 30% of the possession and were outshot 22-4, but after taking an early two-goal lead, they dug in and held on for the three points.

Newcastle United, Manchester City and Chelsea have all won since, however, and Forest have dropped from third to sixth in the Premier League table, but with a game in hand they are only outside the top five on goal difference and just two points off third place.

On paper, Forest's fixtures are also favourable, as they face a poor Leicester City and an out-of-form West Ham United before hosting top-five rivals Chelsea on the final day.

However, Brentford stand in their way first and there is no chance of Nuno taking them lightly, given their strong away form and the fact that Forest were stunned in their last visit to the City Ground, losing to Everton in the final minute of stoppage time.

However, Forest bounced back with a 2-0 win at the Gtech, their first top-flight win over Brentford and their first at the ground this season, after the Bees went into the game having taken 22 points from a possible 24 at home.

Since then, the form has completely reversed, as that kicked off a run of woeful home form, but Thomas Frank's men suddenly found belief on the road, winning five in a row away from the Gtech to start 2025, as well as taking a point at Arsenal after having the worst away record of any Premier League club in the first five months of the season.

Brentford ended their terrible run at home last time out, beating Brighton & Hove Albion 4-2 to end a nine-game winless streak at the Gtech and keep their European dreams alive.

The Bees have never played continental football, but should Man City win the FA Cup, eighth place in this season's Conference will earn them a spot in the league, and Frank's men go into the game just five points adrift.

Fulham and Brighton's late wins at the weekend didn't help, though, so Brentford will need to be close to perfect if they are to close the gap, despite having a game in hand.

Recent Performance

Nottingham Forest Premier League form:WWWLLW

Nottingham Forest form (all competitions):WWLLWL

Brentford Premier League form:LWLDDW

Team News

Neco Williams and Ryan Yates are both available after serving suspensions for Forest's FA Cup defeat to Man City on Sunday, meaning teenager Zach Abbott will miss out.

Jota Silva returned from a brief setback to come on as a late substitute in that game, but will likely have to settle for a place on the bench again, with Elanga set to start after surprisingly being left out against City.

Ola Aina remains Forest's only first-team injury concern, but the Nigerian full-back is now close to a comeback from a calf problem, although Harry Toffolo's performances at left-back have eased the concerns in his absence.

Brentford are close to welcoming back Igor Thiago and Aaron Hickey from long-term setbacks, and Frank is confident that both will feature this season.

There is less optimism for Fabio Carvalho and Josh Dasilva, however, while Yunus Emre Konak joined them on the treatment table after being sent off against Brighton despite only coming on as an 87th-minute substitute.

Rico Henry continued his recovery by playing 30 minutes in the win over the Seagulls, but Frank is likely to keep him in reserve for the time being, especially with Keane Lewis-Potter continuing to impress as a makeshift left-back.

Possible starting lineup

Nottingham Forest possible starting lineup:

Sels; Williams, Milenkovic, Murillo, Toffolo; Dominguez, Anderson; Elanga, Gibbs-White, Hudson-Odoi; Wood

Brentford possible starting lineup:

Flekken; Ajer, Collins, Van den Berg, Lewis-Potter; Norgaard, Yarmolyuk, Damsgaard; Mbeumo, Wissa, Schade