The Nottingham Forest under-18 outfit have been handed a daunting prospect in the FA Youth Cup, with a trip to Wolves on the agenda for the third round of the competition.
The top-flight outfit are currently sitting in fourth place in the under-18 section of the Premier League North and will provide Gareth Holmes’ team with a sizeable test.
No date has been set for the tie as of yet, but the Football Association stipulate that the game must be completed by Saturday 14th December.
Nottingham Forest; FA Youth Cup – (Photo by Tom Flathers/Manchester City FC via Getty Images)
Forest are currently fourth in the North section of the under-18 Professional Development League and most recently defeated Barnsley 3-2 on Saturday.
The Reds have a stunning youth academy and they will relish pitting their wits against higher league opposition in such a prestigious competition.
Challenge
Forest will hope to have a couple of injured players back in time for the game though.
Midfielders Ethan Dekel-Daks and Fin Back are both currently nursing troublesome injuries. As two of Forest’s most important players, the Reds will hope to be able to call upon them in the Youth Cup.
Dekel-Daks is yet to play for the Reds this season; whilst Back has recently gone under the knife to rectify an issue.
Forest were defeated by Manchester City in the FA Youth Cup last year. Despite a valiant effort from the young guns, the Reds fell to a 4-1 defeat in the fourth round of the competition.
Nottingham Forest; FA Youth Cup – (Photo by Jamie McDonald/Getty Images)
They do have a history of doing well in the tournament though. In 2013 a Forest side including Jordan Smith and Jorge Grant reached the semi-final before cruelly losing a penalty shootout to Norwich City.
The current crop would love to emulate that class of 2013 but first, they must show all their quality to overcome a stern Wolves challenge.