Sunday’s English Premier League slate brings us a proper relegation battle. Tottenham and Nottingham Forest are having rough seasons and desperately need points to rescue their seasons. Who comes out on top of this bottom-of-the-table battle?
Tottenham is a +135 ML favorite on DraftKings Sportsbook. A Nottingham Forest upset is priced at +210 odds, with the draw at +240. The over/under for this game is set at 2.5 goals. Let’s get into a prediction and a pick for this matchup.
Tottenham vs. Nottingham Forest prediction, pick
Before we break down this matchup, it’s important to know what is at stake. Here is a snapshot of the relegation battle after Saturday’s matches have come to a close.
Nottingham Forest is currently safe on goal differential, while Tottenham is one point above the drop. It’s safe to say that neither team expected to be here before the season.
Tottenham is close to a generational humiliation. Last season, they finished in 17th, but weren’t all that close to being relegated. Still, it galvanized major transfers and many changes. This year has been an utter disappointment. Despite moving through to the Champions League knockout stages (where they lost to Atletico Madrid), they’ve struggled immensely in Premier League action.
Thomas Frank was supposed to be the steady manager to guide Tottenham this season. But he was not the answer, and Igor Tudor was brought on instead. It turns out the grass isn’t always greener; Tudor is 1-1-4 so far, and the Spurs are close to their first demotion since 1976. Margaret Thatcher wasn’t even Prime Minister then.
Nottingham Forest aren’t having a great time either. They climbed all the way to seventh in the table last season, securing a spot in the Europa League and solidifying themselves in the Premier League pantheon. Yet it has come crashing down around them; now on their third manager of the season, they’re hoping that Vitor Pereira can provide the answers.
For Nottingham, there are two important questions. One, can Elliot Anderson dominate the middle of the pitch? And two, can Morgan Gibbs-White find a moment of magic? If the answer is no to one or both of those questions, it might be a long night for Forest.
For Tottenham, it’s about belief and discipline. Terrible mistakes, missed chances, and devastating red cards have plagued their recent play. It’s a very young team on the whole, and they need steady veteran hands like Richarlison to bring some calm to the squad.
It comes down to belief for me. Despite the two teams being so close in the standings, Tottenham feels more like a mess. Nottingham has pulled through enough to keep advancing in the Europa League, showing a cohesiveness that Tottenham has not displayed in months. I’m banking on Forest snatching all three points on the road.
