Nottingham Forest entertain Manchester United in the FA Cup on Wednesday evening
Nottingham Forest entertain Manchester United in the FA Cup on Wednesday evening
Nottingham Forest and Manchester United do battle at the City Ground in the fifth round of the FA Cup on Wednesday evening, therefore now is an excellent time to check out our featured UK betting sites where you can claim some exclusive Nottingham Forest free bets ahead of their midweek outing.
Kick-off: 7.45pm UK Time, Wednesday 27th February 2024
Live coverage on BBC One
Manchester United were beaten finalists in the 2022/23 FA Cup Final and they will be eager to take a step closer to a second successive final when they face Nottingham Forest at the City Ground on Wednesday evening.
Relegation picture
Nottingham Forest collected three much-needed Premier League points when beating West Ham United 2-0 at the City Ground earlier this month, however just a week later they went down 4-2 at Aston Villa and will be eager to bounce back by claiming a place in the last eight of the FA Cup on Wednesday evening. Nuno Espirito Santo’s men remain very much in the relegation picture with just four points separating them from the bottom three in the Premier League table, while they have slipped down to 17th position on account of Everton’s ten-point deduction being reduced to six on appeal.
Tough test
The Tricky Trees face a tough test at the weekend when they welcome Premier League leaders Liverpool to the City Ground but first they much focus their attention on the visit of Manchester United in the fifth round of the FA Cup on Wednesday evening, a match which gives the home side a chance to make it through to the quarter finals of the competition for the second time in three years.
Confident mood
Having strung together a four-match winning run, Manchester United will have been in confident mood heading into their home meeting with Fulham at the weekend, however the Red Devils came off second best in a 2-1 defeat and they remain sixth in the Premier League table with eight points now separating them from the top-four. The only realistic opportunity for Man United to claim silverware this season is in the FA Cup, a tournament which they have won twelve times in their history. They have made it past the fifth round in all-but-one of the last seven campaigns but they haven’t lifted the trophy since 2016.
Springboard
Prior to losing at the City Ground in December, Manchester United had won their previous eleven games against Nottingham Forest but we envisage a very closely-fought and evenly-contested affair this time around. Victory for the Tricky Trees could act as a springboard for a positive run at a crucial stage of the season, however we envisage this match going the distance and we’ll be siding with it ending all-square after extra time.