Preview: Nottingham Forest vs. Fulham - prediction, team news, lineups

A resurgent Nottingham Forest side host promotion contenders Fulham in the Championship on Sunday afternoon.

Forest are up to 14th in the table after a great start to life under Steve Cooper, while the Cottagers are second.

Match preview

Nottingham Forest were bottom of the Championship when Cooper arrived a month ago, but they have taken 13 points from a possible 15 under the former Swansea City boss.

The Tricky Trees staged a sensational late comeback to beat Bristol City 2-1 on Tuesday evening as Lyle Taylor scored twice in 90 seconds in second half stoppage time.

It was a fourth successive win for Forest and means that they head into the weekend just four points behind the playoff positions.

Forest's credentials to fight for a place in the top six will certainly be tested over the next week, as after facing Fulham they travel to fifth-place Queens Park Rangers.

However, no team has picked up fewer points at home in the Championship this season than Forest (four); a 2-1 win over Blackpool last weekend was their first league victory at the City Ground this season.

They host a Fulham side who have just one win in their last four away matches and lost 4-1 to Coventry City in their last game on the road.

The Cottagers are the Championship's top scorers though with 29 goals to their name, meaning an Aleksandar Mitrovic-led attack will fancy their chances against Forest's defence who have kept just two clean sheets in 13 games.

It was goals from Mitrovic and Tom Cairney that secured a 2-0 victory over Cardiff City on Wednesday, which was Fulham's third win in four games.

The result lifted Marco Silva's side into the top two, but they remain five points behind leaders Bournemouth with a crucial clash against third-place West Bromwich Albion to come next weekend.

Fulham have won four of their previous five games against Nottingham Forest, winning 1-0 at the City Ground the last time the teams met in July 2020.

Nottingham Forest Championship form:

• W
• D
• W
• W
• W
• W

Fulham Championship form:

• L
• D
• W
• L
• W
• W

Fulham form (all competitions):

• L
• D
• W
• L
• W
• W

Team News

Lyle Taylor's two goals off the bench against Bristol City put him in a strong position to take Lewis Grabban's spot in Forest's starting XI.

Joe Lolley and Alex Mighten also made an impact as substitutes in midweek so will be pushing to start on Sunday.

Jordi Osei-Tutu, Loic Mbe Soh and Rodrigo Ely all remain sidelined through injury for the East Midlands side.

Harrison Reed went off injured at halftime in Fulham's win over Cardiff, putting Tom Cairney in the frame to make his first start of the season.

Fabio Carvalho and Joe Bryan are both back in training following their injuries, but it would be a surprise to see either start at the City Ground.

Aleksandar Mitrovic is the Championship's top scorer this season with 13 goals in 13 appearances and netted in his last outing against Forest in August 2019.

Nottingham Forest possible starting lineup:
Samba; Worrall, Figueiredo, McKenna; Spence, Yates, Colback, Lowe; Johnson, Taylor, Lolley

Fulham possible starting lineup:
Rodak; Odoi, Adarabioyo, Ream, Robinson; Seri, Cairney; Wilson, Reid, Kebano; Mitrovic

We say: Nottingham Forest 2-2 Fulham

This will be Cooper's toughest test yet as Forest boss, but he will certainly feel his side can get a result and continue their impressive form. Fulham have slipped up on a few occasions this season but still possess one of the best squads in the league, so we think this game will end level.

Top tip

Our expert tipster partners at Sporita.com are predicting over 1.5 goals in this match. Click here to find out what else they are predicting for this game and for more of their tried-and-tested football tips.Over 1.5:data

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