Nottingham Forest face Rennes tonight with the contest due to take place at St George’s Park. The Reds will be looking to bounce back from defeat to PSV by beating the Ligue 1 outfit in a behind-closed-doors battle.
Pre-season isn’t really about results. The Forest performances, however, have showcased a serious need for reinforcements and hopefully, Steve Cooper’s men can put on a better showing this evening.
Ahead of the penultimate pre-season offering, we looked at how the Reds might line up against the French side later this evening.
Predicted Nottingham Forest XI v Rennes
The Forest rearguard
Given that he’s the only senior goalkeeper at the club, we’d imagine Ethan Horvath will play in between the posts.
Steve Cooper has utilised a back three so far in pre-season and we think that might continue tonight.
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As a result, Scott McKenna will likely play on the left of the three, with captain Joe Worrall on the right and Willy Boly sandwiched between the two of them.
Out wide, we expect a couple of wing-backs utilised by Cooper. Serge Aurier looked tired on Sunday against PSV son Neco Williams will likely start on the right.
Ola Aina was impressive and he will probably play on the left.
The Forest engine room
Orel Mangala and Danilo are striking up quite a partnership in the engine room and they will likely be given the chance to continue that relationship this evening.
Ryan Yates is also one of the most important players in the squad. He should play tonight, although Cooper also has Remo Freuler to consider.
The midfield is likely to be an area that Forest strengthen this summer. Ibrahim Sangare is the top target; with Tyler Adams also under consideration.
Leading the Forest line
Chris Wood played on Sunday and much will depend on the fitness of Taiwo Awoniyi here. If the Nigerian is fit, we’d expect him to get a run-out.
Behind him, it looks like Morgan Gibbs-White who will play once again. He’s looking to build his fitness up after winning the Under-21 European Championships with England.
Predicted Forest XI to play Rennes: Horvath; Worrall, Boly, McKenna; Williams, Mangala, Yates, Danilo, Aina; Gibbs-White; Awoniyi