Nottingham Forest vs Brighton Predictions

• Forest have scored in 14 of their last 15 home league games.
• Brighton had scored in nine consecutive games prior to a 0-0 FA Cup semi-final draw with Manchester United on Sunday.
• Forest have only lost to teams currently in the top four at home since mid-September.

Brighton need a response

Brighton saw their FA Cup hopes ended on Sunday as they were beaten on penalties at Wembley by Manchester United but they need to pick themselves up for Wednesday’s trip to Nottingham Forest.

With games in hand, European football is still very much on the table for eighth-placed Albion but they are coming up against a Forest side scrapping for survival and Wednesday’s game may not be a straightforward affair.

Goals at both ends a good starting point

Fatigue may be a factor for Brighton after a gruelling 120 minutes and a shoot-out at Wembley, and the fact they lost may make it harder to refocus on the league. The huge 5/1 on offer for a home win does look tempting and a double chance result for Forest (win or draw) at 11/8 also appeals, but the best option could be the goals markets and both teams to score stands out.

Forest were able to score twice in a 3-2 defeat to Liverpool last time out and they are generally good for a goal at home. Steve Cooper’s men had scored in 14 successive Premier League home games prior to a 2-0 loss to Manchester United in their last outing at the City Ground, while Brighton had scored in nine successive games prior to their 0-0 draw at Wembley on Sunday.

Forest have injury issues in defence and tiredness could come into play for the visitors’ defenders, so a both teams to score bet appeals in this fixture.

Forest can get a result

Forest may have lost their last four games but at home their results haven’t been particularly disappointing and they can get something out of this game. Since a 3-2 home loss to Fulham in mid-September, Forest have only lost three home games and all of those defeats have been against sides in the top four – against Manchester United (twice) and Newcastle.

A 2-2 draw has some appeals in the correct score market as Forest have drawn three of their last five at home and have conceded exactly twice in three of those games. Brighton have three draws in their last six away and have scored exactly twice in four of those fixtures – two of which were 2-2 draws.

As an outside option, a goal for Morgan Gibbs-White is the scorer pick after his effort against Liverpool. The 23-year-old strikes me as a bit of a confidence player as he tended to score or assist in bunches of games for Sheffield United last term, and he scored in back-to-back Premier League games for Forest in their final two league games before the World Cup so he may be able to follow up his effort at the weekend with another strike on Wednesday.

Build better bets with our free betting tips, predictions and accumulators, every day.