The excitement is building for Nottingham Forest as they anticipate the Europa League draw.
Nuno Espirito Santo guided Forest into Europe for the first time in 30 years, and the last time the Reds participated in this competition, it was known as the UEFA Cup.
Back then, the tournament was a straight knockout, with Forest beating Auxerre, Malmö and Lyon before going out to Bayern Munich.
Forest have taken four points from their first two Premier League games and ahead of Sunday’s game with West Ham, all eyes will be on the Europa League draw which takes place in Monaco.
Forest will be placed in pot three with four pots of nine teams making up the draw, with the Reds set to play four games at the City Ground and four away from home.
The anticipation is building and there could be some very intriguing ties on the cards for Forest to look forward to this season.
Nottingham Forest’s Europa League draw simulated
With the draw set to take place on Friday 29th August, we’ve decided it seems wise to look at the teams Forest could draw in this season’s competition.
Thanks to the Europa League draw simulator from Inker, we can give you a little taster of what could be possible when the draw happens tomorrow.
It’s worth noting that there are still some games to play tonight in qualifying but we’ve simulated the draw, including the teams who are leading from the first leg of their qualifiers.
GW1: Dinamo Zagreb vs Nottingham Forest
The first opponent thrown out from pot one is Croatian champions Zagreb who have a strong pedigree of playing European football.
Furthermore, this would see Forest come up against promotion hero Scott McKenna for the first time since his City Ground exit, with the Scotland star heading to Croatia during the summer.
GW2: Nottingham Forest vs AS Roma
Arguably, the toughest test in the whole competition would be waiting for Forest in matchweek two if this draw has anything to go by.
Roma have a long-standing history with European competitions and finished in a lofty fifth place in Serie A last season and now have Gian Piero Gasperini in charge.
GW3: Nottingham Forest vs Fenerbahce
Now, this one would be absolutely box office, given that Jose Mourinho is in charge of Fenerbahce and has spoken fondly of Forest and Brian Clough previously.
The Turkish outfit would provide a strong test for Forest and this would once again represent arguably the worst case scenario from pot two.
GW4: Basel vs Nottingham Forest
The highest-ranked team in pot three could also be on the cards for Forest after the Swiss team crashed out of the Champions League this week.
This does feel like a very attractive game for Forest though, given that Basel play in a nice stadium and offer a beautiful city for the supporters to visit.
GW5: Nottingham Forest vs Malmo
Now this game would be something quite special. Malmö lead Sigma 3-0 from the first leg and should qualify for the group stages of the Europa League.
Forest beat Malmö in the 1979 European Cup final to win the trophy for the first time and there would be something very romantic about the two teams playing each other in Europe in 2025.
GW6: Genk vs Nottingham Forest
Genk are 5-1 up in their qualifying match against Lech Poznan and right now, they’re projected to be in pot four should they make the group stages.
The Belgian outfit also have a decent pedigree when it comes to European competition, but it’s fair to say that the Reds would fancy their chances should the draw throw up this tie.
GW7: Nottingham Forest vs Ludogorets
Now, this is a game that right now feels a little bit unlikely.
Ludogorets lost their first leg of their final qualifying round against Shkendija and must overturn a 2-1 deficit at home tonight.
If it was to be the Bulgarian outfit, it would be a home game that Forest would feel they could rest players and still progress from.
GW8: Braga vs Nottingham Forest
Braga will be in pot two should they avoid a thrashing at the hands of Lincoln Red Imps tonight with the Portuguese side 4-0 up from the first leg.
Although this would represent a stern test for Forest, it’s fair to say that Braga have tailed off a little bit in recent years and would be a far more attractive Portuguese side to draw than Porto.
Nottingham Forest simulated draw in full
- Dinamo Zagreb vs Nottingham Forest
- Nottingham Forest vs AS Roma
- Nottingham Forest vs Fenerbahce
- Basel vs Nottingham Forest
- Nottingham Forest vs Malmo
- Genk vs Nottingham Forest
- Nottingham Forest vs Ludogorets
- Braga vs Nottingham Forest
In terms of the simulated draw, Forest may well have got a pretty tough hand dealt to them.
That said, if the Reds can come through the first three games unscathed, then the final five fixtures should see the team kick on and progress to the knockout stages.
Espirito Santo will see this as a brilliant chance for Forest and it will now be exciting to see what the actual draw throws up when it gets underway tomorrow.
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