Champions League-chasing Nottingham Forest take on Aston Villa in the Premier League on Saturday evening, and we’ve got the latest team news and predicted lineups in our match preview ahead of the action.
Aston Villa vs Nottingham Forest Preview
With both sides enjoying equally impressive winning runs across all competitions, Aston Villa welcome high-flying Nottingham Forest to the West Midlands in the Premier League on Saturday evening.
Unai Emery’s men head into Gameweek 31 off the back of a comfortable 3-0 win over Brighton in midweek, in which January signings Marcus Rashford, Marco Asensio and Donyell Malen all chipped in with a goal apiece.
The victory extended their winning run to six straight matches, and during this time, they advanced to the FA Cup semi-finals and Champions League quarter-finals, and also climbed up to seventh place in the English top-flight table.
🏆🏆🏆
Three @PremierLeague Manager of the Month awards for Nuno and his team this season. 👏 pic.twitter.com/KjaChMXkZw
— Nottingham Forest (@NFFC) April 4, 2025
Nine points ahead of the Villans, Nottingham Forest occupy a lofty third place in the table, primed for Champions League qualification, as they are now six points clear of fifth place Manchester City and are just four points behind Arsenal.
Last time out, the Reds claimed a narrow 1-0 win over Manchester United, which extended their winning run to five and their unbeaten run to six, and like Villa, they have also advanced to the FA Cup semi-finals.
Nuno Espirito Santo’s side last faced off against Ollie Watkins and co. at the City Ground during Gameweek 16 back in December, where Nikola Milenkovic and Anthony Elanga scored late on to snatch a 2-1 triumph for the East Midlanders.
Aston Villa Team News
The Villans have just one confirmed absentee to deal with for Forest’s visit, with Ross Barkley missing out due to a knee injury, while Jamaican winger Leon Bailey remains a doubt after picking up a knock on international duty.
There had also been question marks over Morgan Rogers after he came off with a knock late on at the Amex, but thankfully for Emery and his coaching staff, there are no indications that issue will keep him out on Saturday.
Nottingham Forest Team News
As for the Reds, their injury woes were added to last time out, as key defender Ola Aina was forced off with a calf injury. It has since been confirmed that the Nigerian will be out “for a while” and will not be available for the trip to Villa Park.
Elsewhere, Chris Wood is still a doubt after suffering a thigh injury in New Zealand’s 3-0 win over New Caledonia last week, and so is German youngster Eric da Silva Moreira, who is struggling with a muscular issue.
Aston Villa vs Nottingham Forest Predicted Lineups
Aston Villa Predicted Lineup:
Martinez; Cash, Konsa, Torres, Digne; Kamara, Tielemans; Rogers, Asensio, Rashford; Watkins
Nottingham Forest Predicted Lineup:
Sels; Milenkovic, Murillo, Morato; Williams, Dominguez, Anderson, Hudson-Odoi; Elanga, Gibbs-White; Awoniyi
Aston Villa vs Nottingham Forest Prediction
Despite Forest being the higher-ranked team in terms of the table, it is Villa that are favoured to come out on top by the UK’s best football sites at a price of 19/20. A draw is rated at 5/2 and a victory for the visitors is priced at 11/4.
We at SportsCasting can see this one going either way, as both sides have been in such strong form lately, but given that the Villans are at home and come into the tie off the back of a mightily impressive win over Brighton, we think the Reds’ Champions League ambitions could be dealt a blow at Villa Park.
Prediction: Aston Villa 2-1 Nottingham Forest
