Brentford vs Nottingham Forest preview, team news and prediction

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Nottingham Forest will be aiming to secure their first-ever Premier League double over Brentford as they travel to the Gtech Community Stadium for Sunday’s top-flight encounter.

Both teams come into the match looking to bounce back from recent disappointments. Brentford suffered a 2-0 defeat to West London rivals Chelsea in their last outing, while Forest endured a heartbreaking Europa League loss to Braga. Brentford had enjoyed a superb run over the festive and New Year period, collecting five wins and a draw from six matches between December 20 and January 10, but their momentum was halted by a trip to the reigning Club World Cup champions.

In Liam Rosenior’s Premier League debut as Chelsea head coach, goals from Joao Pedro and a Cole Palmer penalty handed Brentford their first defeat of 2026. That result, combined with Manchester United’s derby victory over Manchester City, saw Keith Andrews’s side slip to seventh in the table. With the standings so tightly packed, Brentford are just three points ahead of 12th-placed Brighton & Hove Albion at the time of writing.

Nevertheless, few would have predicted Brentford to be in the hunt for European places after a summer of significant changes, and their impressive home form has played a key role in their success. Only Arsenal, Manchester City, and Aston Villa have earned more than Brentford’s 24 home points this season. Andrews’s men are unbeaten in their last seven matches at the Gtech Community Stadium, with their only home defeat in 2025-26 coming against Manchester City back in October.

On the other side, Sean Dyche’s Nottingham Forest endured a nightmare moment in their Europa League clash with Braga on Thursday night. Just 54 seconds after Morgan Gibbs-White saw a penalty saved, Braga raced upfield and capitalized on a series of Forest errors, ending with a comical own goal from Ryan Yates. The defeat was a blow to Forest’s hopes of automatic qualification for the Europa League last 16 and came just days after they had earned a respectable goalless draw against league leaders Arsenal. Despite that positive result, Forest’s recent form has been concerning, with six defeats in their last eight games across all competitions, after losing only three of their first 12 under Dyche.

Currently sitting 17th, Forest remain above the relegation zone for now, with 18th-placed West Ham United five points behind as the weekend begins. However, there are still positives for the visitors: their last Premier League away match ended in a 2-1 win at West Ham, they claimed a 2-0 victory at Brentford in this fixture last season, and they defeated the Bees 3-1 at home on the opening weekend of the current campaign.

Brentford manager Andrews could receive a double boost in midfield this weekend. Frank Onyeka returns from the Africa Cup of Nations after helping Nigeria reach the semi-finals, while there is optimism that Jordan Henderson will be available following the ankle injury that kept him out of the defeat to Chelsea. However, Fabio Carvalho, Antoni Milambo, and Josh Dasilva all remain sidelined with long-term knee injuries.

Despite failing to score at Stamford Bridge, Igor Thiago has already netted 16 goals this season—setting a new record for the most goals by a Brazilian in a single Premier League campaign. He now has his sights set on surpassing Manchester City legend Sergio Aguero, the last South American to score more in an English top-flight season with 21 goals in 2018-19.

For Nottingham Forest, Elliot Anderson’s straight red card against Braga does not affect his Premier League availability. Manager Dyche will also be able to call upon Omari Hutchinson and Taiwo Awoniyi, who are eligible for domestic matches after missing out in Europe. However, Chris Wood and John Victor remain sidelined for a few more weeks with knee injuries, while Igor Jesus and Murillo are doubts after missing the midweek defeat due to knocks. If Jesus is unavailable, Awoniyi is expected to lead the line in what could be one of several changes for Forest following Thursday’s disappointing performance.

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