Nottingham Forest vs Chelsea

Date: October 18 2025, 12:30 BST

Stadium: The City Ground

Nottingham Forest (3-4-3)

• Goalkeeper: M. Sels
• Defenders: N. Milenković, Morato, Murillo
• Midfielders: N. Williams, I. Sangaré, O. Zinchenko, Douglas Luiz
• Forwards: M. Gibbs-White, T. Awoniyi, Elliot Anderson

Chelsea (4-2-3-1)

• Goalkeeper: Robert Sánchez
• Defenders: R. James, T. Chalobah, Joshua Kofi Acheampong, Marc Cucurella
• Midfielders: R. Lavia, Malo Gusto
• Forwards: Pedro Neto, A. Garnacho, João Pedro

Nottingham Forest will be without O. Aina, Douglas Luiz, O. Zinchenko, and C. Wood, all of whom are facing injuries. Their absence is likely to impact the team's midfield and defensive stability.

Chelsea faces several player absences including T. Adarabioyo, L. Colwill, L. Delap, Dário Essugo, M. Mudryk, C. Palmer, Andrey Santos, E. Fernández, W. Fofana, and R. James due to various injuries and a suspension, which may weaken their attacking options.

This Premier League clash features Nottingham Forest, struggling in the relegation zone, against a Chelsea side aiming to improve their mid-table position. The stakes are high for both teams as they seek vital points.

Nottingham Forest comes into this match struggling with four consecutive losses followed by a draw. Their recent performances have shown significant defensive vulnerabilities, leading to 12 goals conceded in just 7 matches.

Chelsea's form has been mixed with three losses in their last four games, including a recent win. They have exhibited attacking flair but need to tighten their defense after conceding 9 goals in the same number of matches.

• May 25 2025: Nottingham Forest 0 - 1 Chelsea
• October 6 2024: Chelsea 1 - 1 Nottingham Forest
• May 11 2024: Nottingham Forest 2 - 3 Chelsea
• September 2 2023: Chelsea 0 - 1 Nottingham Forest
• May 13 2023: Chelsea 2 - 2 Nottingham Forest