Nottingham Forest vs Wolverhampton preview & prediction

Match preview

Nottingham Forest welcome Wolverhampton Wanderers to the City Ground on Wednesday in an attempt to avoid a second domestic cup exit in a week.

Last time out, Steve Cooper’s side were defeated 4-1 by Blackpool in the FA Cup third round, while the visitors forced a replay against Liverpool after a 2-2 draw.

Cooper watched a second-string Nottingham Forest side be ripped apart at will by Blackpool, who served the top-flight strugglers a slice of humble pie in the FA Cup after resting the majority of his first-team stars in their fight for Premier League survival.

While a deep run in the FA Cup may have provided some respite from a difficult Premier League season, Forest are on the verge of reaching the EFL Cup semi-finals for the first time since the 1991-92 season, when they lost to Manchester United in the final.

It didn’t take long for newly-appointed Wolves manager Julen Lopetegui to taste VAR wrath in England, as the ex-Sevilla coach was left to rue what could have been in a four-goal FA Cup stalemate with Liverpool at Anfield.

Wolves have not reached the EFL Cup quarter-finals in 27 years, losing to West Midlands rivals Aston Villa in 1996, and have not reached the final four since winning the title for the second time in 1980.

Nottingham Forest vs Wolverhampton Head to Head

Wolverhampton	1 – 0	Nottingham
Nottingham	0 – 4	Wolverhampton
Wolverhampton	0 – 2	Newcastle
Nottingham Forest	1 – 2	Wolverhampton
Wolverhampton	1 – 0	Nottingham

Nottingham Forest vs Wolverhampton form guide

Nottingham’s last 5 games – WLDWL

Blackpool	4 – 1	Nottingham
Southampton	0 – 1	Nottingham
Nottingham Forest	1 – 1	Chelsea
Manchester United	3 – 0	Nottingham
Blackburn	1 – 4	Nottingham

Wolverhampton’s last 5 games – WWLDD

Liverpool	2 – 2	Wolverhampton
Aston Villa	1 – 1	Wolverhampton
Wolverhampton	0 – 1	Man utd
Everton	1 – 2	Newcastle
Wolverhampton	2 – 0	Gillingham

Key stats

The two sides have clashed on 133 previous occasions, with Wolves leading 63-44.
Their most recent meeting in October 2022 saw Wolves claim a 1-0 home win.
Forest are on a six-game unbeaten run at home across competitions, with five games producing less than three goals.
Wolves’ last seven away games across competitions have had goals at both ends.

Nottingham Forest vs Wolverhampton prediction

Wolves put on quite a show at Anfield, relying on two underwhelming pieces of play by Alisson Becker for their goals, and Lopetegui’s men may have to rely on penalties to advance to the semi-finals. Hence we go with the following pickings in this fixture: