Leicester City vs Nottingham Forest: Preview and Predictions for the East Midlands Derby

The highly anticipated East Midlands Derby between Leicester City and Nottingham Forest is set to kick off on Friday, October 25, at the King Power Stadium. This match marks the beginning of Gameweek 9 in the Premier League and promises to be an intense encounter between two teams in good form.

Leicester City, under the management of Steve Cooper, have recently found their footing with back-to-back wins against Bournemouth and Southampton. Their latest victory over Southampton was particularly notable, as it involved a remarkable comeback. Despite this momentum, Cooper faces a challenging task against his former team, Nottingham Forest, whom he led to the Premier League in 2022 before being sacked.

Nottingham Forest, managed by Nuno Espirito Santo, have been one of the surprise packages of the season. They have suffered only one defeat in their first eight league matches and are on the cusp of breaking into the top five with a win. Forest’s defensive solidity has been a key factor, having allowed just six goals so far, a record only bettered by Liverpool.

Predictions for the match are split, but many analysts favor Nottingham Forest. Chris Sutton predicts a 1-0 victory for Forest, highlighting their strong defensive performance and the form of striker Chris Wood, who has scored three goals in his last four appearances. Rapper Nemzzz, a Manchester United supporter, also forecasts a Forest win, albeit with a 0-2 scoreline.

The match will be streamed live on various platforms depending on the region. In the US, it will be available on USA Network and the NBC Sports website, as well as through streaming services like Sling TV. In the UK, the match will be exclusive to Sky Sports, while in Canada, it can be watched on Fubo Canada, and in Australia, on Optus Sport.

Both teams face some fitness concerns ahead of the match. Leicester City will be without Jannik Vestergaard, Jakub Stolarczyk, Patson Daka, and Hamza Choudhury, while Nottingham Forest may be without Morgan Gibbs-White and have longer-term absences including Danilo and Ibrahim Sangare.