Supporters will travel in sizeable numbers to see Valencia v Nottingham Forest tomorrow night. For those of a Forest persuasion, they might be wondering whether or not the Reds have played at the Mestalla Stadium.
The home of Valencia is one of the more atmospheric grounds in Spain. The stadium has a capacity of 48,600 and is the eighth largest in Spain.
It has been called the Mestalla Stadium since 1994. Prior to that, it was known as the Estadio Luis Casanova.
Valencia are the only club side that has played their home games at the stadium. It has been used for several Spain international fixtures over the years, however.
Have Forest ever played at the Mestalla Stadium?
Tomorrow night’s friendly won’t be the first time that a Forest team has walked out onto the turf at the stadium.
It will, however, be their first visit in many years.
The Reds last played there in the second leg of the UEFA Super Cup in 1980. On that occasion, the Reds lost 1-0 and missed the chance to win the competition.
Despite winning at the City Ground 2-1, the La Liga outfit won on the away goal that has now been taken out of European competition.
Forest also played at the famous stadium in 1961. That occasion also proved unsuccessful as Valencia won 2-0 in the Fairs Cup.
Two other occasions outings at the Mestalla have taken place too but they weren’t competitive fixtures.
Forest won 1-0 back in 1959 and lost to the Spanish outfit 1-0 in 1967.
Forest face test against Valencia
This should be a useful final mid-season friendly for the Reds ahead of their competitive return next week.
The two clubs met each other in the summer and drew 1-1 at Meadow Lane, with Brennan Johnson scoring for the Reds.
Valencia are striving for consistency under Gennaro Gattuso. They currently sit 10th in the league after 14 games of 2022/23.
Tomorrow’s game should be competitive and promises to be a good occasion for the travelling Forest faithful.
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