Manchester United vs Nottingham Forest Prediction, Preview and Stats

England flag 2025/2026 Premier League, England
Old Trafford Sun, 17 May - 11:30 AM
Premier League
Manchester United MUN
Versus
Nottingham Forest NFO
KICKOFF : Sun, 17 May - 11:30 AM
Round 37 Regular Season

CONTEXT

Manchester United host Nottingham Forest at Old Trafford for a Premier League regular season encounter in the 2025/2026 campaign. The Red Devils command a robust power score of 91.75 against the visitors' 71.88, securing a substantial 19.9-point advantage that underscores their structural superiority. Currently third in the standings, United aim to solidify their top-tier status, while 16th-placed Forest grapple with inconsistency. Neutral form scores of zero for both squads erase recent baggage, setting up an intriguing reset. Home advantage at the iconic venue amplifies United's edge, where crowd energy often fuels dominance. League positions reflect squad quality disparities, with United's depth poised to overwhelm. Absent detailed efficiency or set-piece breakdowns due to unavailable xG data, attention turns to overarching power metrics and transitional threats. Forest's defensive resolve faces stern tests against United's attacking intent. This fixture epitomizes Premier League contrasts.

TL;DR

  • Structural: Manchester United hold a 19.9-point power advantage with a 91.75 score over Nottingham Forest's 71.88.
  • Form: Both Manchester United and Nottingham Forest enter with form scores of zero.
  • Squad: League positions place Manchester United third and Nottingham Forest 16th.
  • Efficiency: Efficiency metrics remain unavailable for this matchup.
  • Transition: Transition play data unavailable in the provided dataset.
  • Set pieces: Set piece stats show low confidence levels with proxy data employed for both teams.
  • xVariable: xG data absent as add-on not enabled for set pieces analysis.
  • Market: Manchester United 59.4% (Δ+0%) | Draw 22.4% (Δ+0%) | Nottingham Forest 18.2% (Δ+0%).
No standings statistics available.
No head-to-head records found.
0.5+ goals: 85%
1.5+ goals: 70%
2.5+ goals: 50%
3.5+ goals: 25%
Confidence: High (≥8 matches)

Quality vs Volume

Home: xG 1.8, Shots 12, xG/Shot 0.15
Away: xG 1.5, Shots 14, xG/Shot 0.11

Open Play vs Set Play

Open Play: 65%
Set Play: 35%

Expected Points

TeamxPts
Home1.8
Away1.2
ℹ️ Methodology: Expected Goals (xG) measures shot quality
Jan 25 vs Team A
Feb 1 vs Team B
Feb 8 vs Team C
Manchester United M. Carrick
M. Carrick
VS
Nottingham Forest V. de Oliveira Lopes Pereira
V. de Oliveira Lopes Pereira
1.88
Avg Points / Game (Last 100 Matches)
1.36
1.83 i
Last 6 Opponents
Sunderland Rank: 81 D
Liverpool Rank: 93 W
Brentford Rank: 88 W
Chelsea Rank: 89 W
Leeds United Rank: 87 L
AFC Bournemouth Rank: 91 D
Avg Points / Game (Last 6 Matches)
2.33 i
Last 6 Opponents
Newcastle United Rank: 89 D
Chelsea Rank: 89 W
Sunderland Rank: 81 W
Burnley Rank: 78 W
Aston Villa Rank: 91 D
Tottenham Hotspur Rank: 85 W
6
Head to Head (Wins - Draws - Losses)
6 - 1 - 3
3
No sidelined player data available.

Win Probabilities

Live Win Probability (90 Min)
Home Manchester United
59.39%
Draw
22.41%
Away Nottingham Forest
18.19%

Team Power Ranking

i
What is Power Ranking?
Power ranking is SportMonks' model-based team strength indicator. Historical input capped to 2 seasons.
91.75
71.88
0 (Weakest) 100 (Strongest)
Metric
Manchester United
Nottingham Forest
Power Score
91.75
71.88
League Position
3
16
Global Rank
9
20

Form Analysis Opponent-Weighted

Line chart of recent results (points/trend). Friendlies excluded by default. Hover for opponent, result, xG/xGA and power ranking — based on last 6 matches.

–
vs
Manchester United — Opponent-weighted form score
Nottingham Forest — Opponent-weighted form score
Win (3 pts) Draw (1 pt) Loss (0 pts) Manchester United Nottingham Forest

Team Head to Head Last 6 Seasons

Summary of 0 matches between these sides — filtered by competition and venue context.

Manchester United MUN Home
0 matches
Nottingham Forest NFO Away
Match Record
0
Wins
0
0
Draws
0
0
Losses
0
Goals
0
Goals Scored
0
0
Goals Conceded
0
0
Goal Difference
0

Data last updated: 2026-05-13T00:52:57+00:00

STARTING XI - EXPECTED

Pitch
S. Lammens
31 S. Lammens
N. Mazraoui
3 N. Mazraoui
H. Maguire
5 H. Maguire
L. Martínez
6 L. Martínez
L. Shaw
23 L. Shaw
M. Mount
7 M. Mount
K. Mainoo
37 K. Mainoo
A. Traoré
16 A. Traoré
B. Fernandes
8 B. Fernandes
M. Carneiro Da Cunha
10 M. Carneiro Da Cunha
J. Zirkzee
11 J. Zirkzee
Pitch
M. Sels
26 M. Sels
F. Rodrigues
4 F. Rodrigues
N. Milenković
31 N. Milenković
J. da Cunha Filho
23 J. da Cunha Filho
L. Netz
25 L. Netz
E. Anderson
8 E. Anderson
N. Domínguez
16 N. Domínguez
D. Bakwa
29 D. Bakwa
N. Williams
3 N. Williams
T. Awoniyi
9 T. Awoniyi
I. da Cruz
19 I. da Cruz

General Information

Date & Time :
May 17, 2026, 11:30 AM
Competition :
2025/2026 Premier League, England · Round 37 · Regular Season
Stadium :
Old Trafford
Capacity :
74879
Pitch Surface :
Grass
Weather :
☀️ 12°C, Fair
Referees :
Michael Salisbury
Ben Toner
Marc Perry
Natalie Aspinall

Expected Lineup

Referee : Michael Salisbury

Starting XI ▼

31
Senne Lammens
Senne Lammens Goalkeeper
6.75
11
Joshua Zirkzee
Joshua Zirkzee Centre Forward
6.67
37
Kobbie Mainoo
Kobbie Mainoo Defensive Midfield
6.84
3
Noussair Mazraoui
Noussair Mazraoui Right Back
6.85
5
Harry Maguire
Harry Maguire Right Back
6.8
7
Mason Mount
Mason Mount Defensive Midfield
6.79
8
Bruno Fernandes
Bruno Fernandes Attacking Midfield
7.74
10
Matheus Cunha
Matheus Cunha Left Wing
7.12
16
Amad Diallo
Amad Diallo Right Wing
7.02
23
Luke Shaw
Luke Shaw Left Back
6.76
6
Lisandro Martínez
Lisandro Martínez Left Back
6.83
Referee : Michael Salisbury

Starting XI ▼

26
Matz Sels
Matz Sels Goalkeeper
6.8
25
Luca Netz
Luca Netz Midfielder
6.7
3
Neco Williams
Neco Williams Midfielder
6.94
9
Taiwo Awoniyi
Taiwo Awoniyi Attacker
6.81
19
Igor Jesus
Igor Jesus Attacker
6.8
16
Nicolás Domínguez
Nicolás Domínguez Central Midfield
6.76
23
Jair Cunha
Jair Cunha Right Back
6.61
4
Morato
Morato Left Back
6.76
8
Elliot Anderson
Elliot Anderson Central Midfield
7.23
29
Dilane Bakwa
Dilane Bakwa Central Midfield
6.7
31
Nikola Milenković
Nikola Milenković Centre Back
6.74

CONCLUSION

Manchester United's commanding 19.9-point power lead and third-place standing position them strongly against 16th-placed Nottingham Forest at Old Trafford. Neutral form scores level recent momentum, yet home dominance tilts proceedings. Lacking granular efficiency, transition, or set-piece insights, superior overall metrics favor the hosts decisively. United's squad depth, reflected in standings, should exploit Forest's struggles. Expect controlled possession and chance creation from the Red Devils, testing Forest's backline resilience. This clash illuminates league hierarchies, with victory extending United's momentum while deepening Forest's woes. Old Trafford magic likely seals a home triumph.

Manchester United vs Nottingham Forest preview with tactical analysis, xG context, lineup signals, and data-backed betting insights for faster decisions.

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