Saturday’s second FA Cup quarter-final fixture sees Nottingham Forest travel to the South Coast to take on Brighton and Hove Albion.
Both sides are flying high in the Premier League, with Forest in third and Brighton in seventh. Only seven points separate the two sides, so expect a fiercely contested battle at the Amex Stadium.
BRIGHTON VS NOTTINGHAM FOREST PREVIEW
Nottingham Forest scraped into the quarter-finals of the FA Cup following a 1-1 draw against Ipswich in the last round. They needed penalties to get past the East Anglian outfit after Ryan Yates cancelled out George Hirst’s opening goal.
Brighton’s passage was a little smoother, but they still needed extra time to defeat Newcastle United at St James’ Park. An Alexander Isak penalty had given the Magpies the lead, but Yankuba Minteh secured an equaliser against his former club just before the break.
Fabian Schar thought he had won the tie for Newcastle but his cushioned volley was ruled out for offside by VAR. This was in the final seconds of normal time. In extra time, Danny Welbeck netted the winner for Brighton.
The Seagulls have reached the quarter-finals for the third time in seven years, and have progressed to the semi-finals on all occasions.
Forest, meanwhile, will be looking to reach the semi-finals for the first time since 1991, when they reached the final. The nearest they have come was in 1996 and 2022, when they were dumped out at the quarter-final stage by Aston Villa and Liverpool respectively.
While there is little separating the two sides in the table, it was anything but in their last meeting. Forest ran away 7-0 winners against Brighton on 1 February.
This corresponding fixture, back in September, ended in a 2-2 draw. Brighton were disappointed here too as they failed to beat 10-man Forest on their own patch.
BRIGHTON VS NOTTINGHAM FOREST PREDICTIONS
Brighton Win
Brighton have not lost to Forest at home since February 2015. In that time, they have picked up three wins and two draws. They have home advantage here and have not lost at the Amex since a 1-0 defeat to Everton at the end of January. They are looking for their fifth straight home win in all competitions.
Draw
Very little separates the two sides in the league, with both sides having strong seasons. Brighton go into this fixture off the back of an impressive 2-2 draw at Manchester City. In the last round of the FA Cup, neither side could finish the job in 90 minutes. Brighton needed extra time to defeat Newcastle, while Forest were taken to penalties by Ipswich.
Nottingham Forest Win
Nottingham Forest go into this game off a 4-2 away win at Ipswich in the Premier League. This followed a 1-0 home success against Manchester City. They will also feel confident against Brighton having thrashed them 7-0 just under two months ago.
BRIGHTON VS NOTTINGHAM FOREST – BETTING TIPS
Brighton Win
Nottingham Forest will have one eye on securing Champions League football through the league route, while Brighton will see winning the FA Cup as a viable route into Europe. They are also enjoying some good form, having won five of their last seven in all competitions. In this run, they also outplayed Manchester City in a 2-2 draw at the Etihad. Furthermore, Forest striker Chris Wood is injured for this game. The absence of the 18-goal striker will significantly weaken the visitors.
Both Team To Score
While this may seem counter-intuitive following Brighton’s 7-0 thrashing at the City Ground, that was likely a one-off. It’s worth remembering that this corresponding fixture back in September ended 2-2 while BTTS has come in in three of the last five meetings between the two sides.
Over 2.5 Goals
I also expect a high-scoring encounter at the Amex. Four of the last five games between the two sides have had at least four goals. Meanwhile, over 2.5 goals have been scored in all of Brighton’s last eight games in all competitions.
BRIGHTON VS NOTTINGHAM FOREST – HEAD-TO-HEAD AND KEY STATS
- Brighton and Nottingham Forest have played each other 43 times, with Forest winning 18 encounters. Brighton have won 13, while there have been 12 draws.
- Brighton have only won two of their last seven matches against Forest, drawing two.
- Brighton have won four successive games at the Amex Stadium.
- Nottingham Forest are unbeaten in four games in all competitions.
