Nottingham Forest face Midtjylland in the Europa League this week, and they arrive in Nottingham on the back of a 1-1 draw with AGF at the weekend.
The result means that Midtjylland do have a final to look forward to, with the game taking place in the DBU Pokalen and the Danish giants winning the first leg 1-0.
Nottingham Forest are charging £50-£70 for the Midtjylland game this week, what are your thoughts?
Forest go into Thursday’s first leg on the back of a spirited 2-2 draw away at Manchester City, and after an eight-day break, Vitor Pereira might choose to go with a strong team.
Midtjylland drawing with AGF is far from the best result, but they still showcased some bits and pieces that Forest have to treat as a warning ahead of this week’s City Ground tussle.
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Nottingham Forest must treat Midtjylland with respect in first leg
Forest have seen first hand this season just how good the Danish outfit can be after they ran out 3-2 winners in the opening Europa League game at the City Ground this season.
Against AGF, Midtjylland showcased some of the qualities that made them so good against Forest all the way back in October.
For starters, the team are supremely energetic, and it’s a non-negotiable that Forest match them in that sense during the first leg on Thursday.
Midtjylland fell behind in the second leg of their semi-final at the weekend but scored 10 minutes later to go through 2-1 on aggregate.
Much like they did at the City Ground, Midtjylland remain red hot at set piece situations and with a number of physical players in their team, the Reds must defend those situations properly.
Soccer Stats shows that Midtjylland have won nine or more corners in 64% of their matches this season, and given how bad Forest have been at set pieces this season, that is a cause for concern.
Forest must keep Philip Billing quiet
The Reds fan base will be forgiven for waking up in a hot sweat when it comes to Billing.
The player has scored four goals and claimed four assists this season, and played the full 90 minutes in the previous City Ground clash.
Billing has scored a number of goals against Forest in the past and proved a nemesis when he played for Huddersfield and Bournemouth in England.
Ultimately, the Reds have to park the October debacle and come out on top of the latest clash, with a place in the quarter-final at stake over the two legs.
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