Home of football statistics and historyTop four hopefuls Nottingham Forest face a stern test in the Premier League on March 15 when they travel to Portman Road to take on an Ipswich Town side determined to beat the drop.
Given their current form and league position, Nottingham are likely to be considered favourites by online football betting sites. However, Ipswich have shown time and again this season that they can beat the odds and pull off surprises.
With the home crowd cheering them on and the dangerous duo of Liam Delap and Omari Hutchinson, the Tractor Boys will be optimistic about claiming all three points.
That will, however, be easier said than done against Nuno Espirito Santo’s men who deservedly sit third in the Premier League standings. Only Liverpool and Arsenal have lost fewer games than Forest, highlighting how difficult it is for teams to break them down.
Who will come out on top in this exciting encounter between two attack-minded teams? Let’s dive in deeper before getting to a prediction.
Recent Form & Head-to-Head Record
Nottingham Forest are the form team heading into this fixture while they won the reverse tie 1-0 thanks to a penalty from Chris Wood.
The last time they travelled to Portman Road was in the 2018/2019 campaign when both sides were still in the Championship. The game ended in a 1-1 draw, though three months prior Forest won their home fixture against Ipswich 2-0, courtesy of a Lewis Grabban brace.
If the head-to-head stats are anything to go by, we could be in for another close encounter.
Key Players to Watch in Ipswich vs Nottingham Forest
Starting with the hosts, we mentioned their dangermen in the introduction. Ipswich will no doubt look for inspiration from Delap and Hutchinson. Despite the team’s struggles, the English youngsters are enjoying an excellent season under Kieran McKenna. Delap’s performances have reportedly caught the interest of the likes of Chelsea and Manchester United.
For Forest, they have several key players, but their standout performer is undoubtedly Chris Wood. The 33-year-old striker is among the top goal scorers in the Premier League with 18 strikes, only one behind Erling Haaland and five behind Mohamed Salah at the time of writing. Morgan Gibbs-White has also played a key part for Forest, contributing to 10 goals.
Tactical Preview: How Ipswich & Forest Will Approach the Game?
With the raucous home crowd spurring them on, we can expect to see Ipswich take the game to Forest, with Delap pressing from the front. That could force the visitors to set up more cautiously, sitting back and looking to break on the counter. Recent meetings between the sides have been low scoring and we could see the game decided by the odd goal.
Betting Insights & Prediction
Having met at the beginning of the month in the FA Cup fifth round, the sides will go at it again, this time for three valuable points up for grabs. The safest bet seems to be Under 2.5 Goals, which has come out in each of the last three meetings. In terms of an upset, you certainly can’t write off Ipswich who have beaten Tottenham and Chelsea this season. The odds would no doubt be enticing for the home win. But we see this game ending in a 1-1 stalemate.
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