Undefeated, but with different workloads: prediction for Sporting vs Nottingham Forest
The friendly clash between Lisbon’s Sporting and Nottingham Forest is set for Friday in Portugal’s Algarve region. For the hosts, this will be their final tune-up before the new season kicks off, while the English side faces a demanding schedule - about nine hours earlier, Oliver Glasner’s squad will play Portimonense.
Sporting: three straight wins and a major squad overhaul
Sporting are enjoying an almost flawless pre-season, having won all three of their friendlies. The Lisbon side hammered Celtic 4-1, then demolished Strasbourg 7-0, and most recently handled Monaco with confidence - 2-0. The team looks powerful in attack, regains possession quickly, and is already showing impressive physical fitness.
The squad has undergone notable changes: Francisco Trincão has left for Al-Ahli, Morten Hjulmand is moving on to Atlético, and Geovani Kenda has joined Chelsea. There’s also an expected departure - Ousmane Diomande is set to join Nottingham Forest, so the defender won’t feature against his potential new club. Among the new arrivals, Chelsea loanee Jesse Derry stands out, having already scored against Monaco.
Nottingham Forest: new coach and a cautious start
Nottingham Forest are embarking on a new era under Oliver Glasner after a chaotic previous season that saw four head coaches at the helm. So far, the English club remains unbeaten: they started with a 2-0 win over Notts County, followed up with a 3-0 victory against Blackburn, and drew 1-1 with Vitória Guimarães.
Igor Jesus has been particularly impressive, finding the net in each of Forest’s three pre-season matches. However, the squad situation remains tricky: Elliot Anderson has been sold to Manchester City for £116 million, and the only new signing so far is Xaver Schlager. On top of that, the lineup against Sporting will depend heavily on who logs the most minutes against Portimonense earlier in the day.
Match facts and head-to-heads
- Sporting have won all three pre-season matches with an aggregate score of 13-1.
- Nottingham Forest are unbeaten this summer: two wins and one draw.
- Igor Jesus has scored in each of the English club’s three friendlies.
Fatigue could level the playing field: Sporting vs Nottingham Forest prediction
Based on current form, Sporting look more convincing: they’ve found their rhythm, score regularly, and rarely make mistakes at the back. This is their final dress rehearsal before the official season opener, so expect motivation and intensity to be close to competitive levels.
However, Nottingham Forest are also unbeaten in pre-season and have players who can punish opponents on the counter. The big question is physical freshness - this will be Forest’s second game of the day, so Glasner will almost certainly rotate his squad heavily.
