Nottingham Forest take on Arsenal this afternoon looking to go through to the Fourth Round of the FA Cup. The Reds will hope to do what they did in 2018 and knock out the Gunners at this stage.
The Reds haven’t played since a 1-0 defeat to Huddersfield in December. They called off their game against Barnsley due to a covid outbreak in the Forest ranks.
It means the Reds could be refreshed for this afternoon’s game. Likewise, Arsenal saw their Carabao Cup semi-final with Liverpool postponed on Thursday.
Ahead of this afternoon’s game, we looked at how Forest could line up, with Steve Cooper boasting plenty of options to choose from.
The Forest rearguard
Brice Samba is firmly established as the club’s number one goalkeeper and will start against Arsenal. Ethan Horvath will remain in reserve.
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Cooper is likely to go with a strong team. As a result, Djed Spence will play at right-back, with Jack Colback likely to continue deputising on the left.
At centre-back, there could be a debut. If Cooper goes 3-4-3, Steve Cook could come in for his debut, starting between Joe Worrall and Scott McKenna.
In the Forest engine room
Ryan Yates missed the defeat to Huddersfield with illness. He should return today, however, and Forest will welcome his tenacity back in the middle.
Alongside him, Cooper does have options. Braian Ojeda deputised for Yates against the Terriers and did play quite well.
It seems as though the Forest boss will perhaps call on James Garner though. He will want to flex his Premier League credentials to parent club Manchester United.
Leading the Forest line
Lewis Grabban has a bit more competition for a place now. Keinan Davis has signed on loan from Aston Villa and he looks set to be in the squad today.
Grabban looks likely to start up front on his own though; with two attacking midfielders roaming in behind.
Brennan Johnson and Philip Zinckernagel have been the two most trusted performers in those positions for Cooper – and don’t expect them to change today.
Here is how Forest could line up against Arsenal:
