- Midtjylland beat Nottingham Forest 3-2 at the City Ground in their only previous competitive meeting this season in the Europa League
- FCM are in strong form, including key wins in the Europa League.
- Vítor Pereira’s 4-2-3-1/4-3-3 system is both pragmatic and positive, offering a framework for Forest to play through, but they are still seeking consistency
Vítor’s video game
Nottingham Forest are favourites to win Thursday’s Europa League round-of-16 first leg against FC Midtjylland at 61/100, but it is still very close between these two teams and the draw at 347/100 is worth a wager, even if the visitors are rated as big as 247/50.
Vítor Pereira has brought structure and transition play to Forest and they look much more solid at the back than they did in Nuno Espirito Santo’s time. The Portuguese tactician has also encouraged his side to get the ball forward quickly and play through the thirds, but the Red Devils are still struggling to click and remain just above the Premier League relegation zone.
Forest’s away form in Europe is better than their domestic efforts with a 3-0 win over Fenerbahçe in their most recent game. They have also suffered narrow Premier League defeats and held Manchester City to a 2-2 draw in an exciting match in which Morgan Gibbs-White produced his equaliser.
Midtjylland may be ready for a midfield battle
Midtjylland’s victory at the City Ground in August could still have a psychological effect on this match, while Forest will be desperate to get the monkey off their back after losing that Europa League meeting and needing a boost in the competition.
The Danes are flying high in their domestic league, consistently among the top two, and have a good record in both the Superliga and the Europa League of late. Mike Tullberg’s side recently beat Dinamo Zagreb and OB, showing their attacking flair and clinicality in front of goal.
Júnior Brumado is Midtjylland’s danger man up front, thriving in transition and set-piece situations. Philip Billing and Aral Şimşir bring a strong mix of physicality, creativity and set-piece threat to Midtjylland’s midfield while their system of play is built on high-tempo, high-intensity pressing with rapid transitions.
Forest’s forwards are finally finding their shooting boots
Pereira’s 4-2-3-1/4-3-3 hybrid sets up an interesting tactical clash with Midtjylland’s 3-4-3 or 4-2-3-1 as the home side will want to keep it tight and hit on the counter while the visitors will try to overrun Forest’s wings and force a midfield contest.
Injuries and a lack of squad depth continue to be a sub-plot of Forest’s campaign while Midtjylland’s deep bench has been put to the test but appears to be up to the task. Callum Hudson-Odoi’s return to fitness has added width and directness to the home attack while Igor Jesus remains Pereira’s most trusted striker, leading the Europa League scoring charts.
Midtjylland will surely look for an away goal on Thursday after their win at the City Ground and have the clinicality to do so, although we’re expecting Forest to come back at them. The both teams to score market is our first preference at 39/50 as we cannot see Pereira’s men keeping the Danes out for the entire 90 minutes and an open game looks likely. Midtjylland are worth a small support at 247/50, but we’re taking the 1-1 correct score as the most likely result in a tight match-up between two talented teams.
