Nottingham Forest vs Arsenal Odds: Back Nketiah to get on the scoresheet
Mikel Arteta's in-form Arsenal side travel away to Nottingham Forest in the 3rd round of the FA Cup, live on ITV.
The Gunners 5 game win streak came to an end last weekend as they suffered a late 2-1 defeat to current Premier League champions Manchester City. A result which was probably tough for Arsenal fans to take after dominating large parts of the game before going down to ten men. The record 14-time winners of this competition will be looking to get back to winning ways as they take on Steve Coopers’ Nottingham Forest.
Cooper has definitely improved this Forest side since his takeover, and has only tasted defeat on 3 occasions but they have lost their last 2. They currently occupy 9th place in Englands second tier and have accumulated 34 points from 25 games. Forest haven’t played since the end of December due to COVID and have injuries ahead of this clash, so it will be interesting to see how they line up Sunday evening.
These sides actually have recent history despite playing at different levels in the English pyramid, and Arsenal haven’t always had it their way. These two sides played out this exact fixture in 2018 when Forest came out victorious with a deserving 4-2 win. The bookies have Forest around 5/1 for a repeat of an upset, with Arsenal knocking about as short as 3/5.
Nottingham Forest vs Arsenal Tips
With a rearranged League cup Semi Final on the horizon midweek vs Liverpool, Nketiah should get the chance to lead the line here Vs Nottingham Forest in what could be a second string Arsenal side.
Nketiah has scored 5 goals this season, all which have came in the league cup in just 3 starts. The Arsenal 3rd choice striker recently scored a hat-trick in a 5-0 win vs Sunderland so am I hoping he can carry this eye for goal into the FA Cup.
This bet is 6/5 in most places with it as short as 23/20 with William Hill, so a very attractive price with Unibet. I expect a second string Arsenal side to have enough to beat Forest, so I am happy to have a 1Pt play on Nketiah to find the net as he will be Arsenal’s main threat for goals.
Joe Worrall has been in and amongst the cards this season, picking up 6 cards in 21 League appearances, but 5 of the 6 cards have came in his last 11 games!
6/1 looks a great price given his recent card record. He averages the 4th most tackles per game in the Forest squad, which shows he loves to get stuck in. You feel he will be up against it Vs a youthful Arsenal side which could lead to him being booked once again. He was actually sent off for two yellows when these sides met in Forests’ famous 4-2 win back in 2018.
I am happy to have half a point on this. Pawson is the referee for this one who has been decent for cards this season, however I did notice his lower averages in cup fixtures over recent years, so half a point seems fitting.
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