Nottingham Forest have taken the English Premier League by storm in the 2024/25 season, emerging as the surprise package and residing strongly in third place with 40 points after 20 matches. Sitting just six points behind league leaders Liverpool, their performances have not only defied expectations, with many predicting them to be relegated before the season started, but also raised the bar for what they can now achieve this campaign.
Once seen as relegation contenders, Forest are now being whispered about as genuine title contenders. Here, we explore five key reasons why we believe they do have what it takes to lift the trophy come the end of the season:
Defensive Strength
Nottingham Forest have been one of the best performing teams in the league in terms of their defence, with only Arsenal conceding less than their 19 goals shipped in the Premier League this season.
While Matz Sels deserves credit for his brilliance in net, keeping nine clean sheets – more than anyone else in the league – a large reason for this is the superb central defensive partnership of Murillo and Nikola Milenkovic.
Murillo’s strength may not reside in being the best defender in the league, but his on-the-ball ability is second to none when it comes to central defenders, ranking in the top six per cent for successful dribbles per 90 and playing a key role in helping Nottingham Forest turn defence into attack.
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Combined with Milenkovic’s defensive superiority, ranking in the top 20% of defenders for duels won, percentage of duels won, aerial duels won and blocks throughout this campaign, and it is easy to understand why Nottingham Forest are so effective at the back. Forest have had the least amount of possession in the league on average this season, showing how they’ve built this run on a solid foundation, akin to Leicester’s title win in 2015/16 when the Foxes had the third lowest average possession that season.
Chris Wood’s Goalscoring Exploits
Chris Wood has solidified himself as a consistent Premier League goal scorer throughout his career, but the striker has reached new heights since Nuno Espirito Santo took over at Nottingham Forest.
Since the manager took charge, only Erling Haaland (24) and Alexander Isak (23) have scored more than Wood’s 21 non-penalty goals, while the striker has already netted 12 in 20 Premier League matches this season.
His goals mean he is the sixth highest scorer in the league this term, helping win games and points to push Forest up the table, while his excellence in hold-up play have superbly facilitated Forest’s direct style of play.
Attacking Dynamism
Alongside the brilliance of Wood, Nottingham Forest’s supporting cast of attackers has helped propel them up the table. Anthony Elanga, Callum Hudson-Odoi and Jota Silva offer explosive pace, power and immense technique from wide areas, while the technical brilliance of Morgan Gibbs-White in attacking midfield has played a key role in their remarkable ability to counter-attack this season.
With the likes of Neco Williams and Ola Aina also providing threat from wide areas, thanks to their overlapping runs from full-back, Forest are able to overload wide positions and give plenty of service to Wood in the box.
Strong Squad Depth
Some of Nottingham Forest’s talent has already been mentioned in previous points, but all of these players have more than capable back-up options, a factor that has helped them maintain their strong performances even when key players are unavailable.
Despite not featuring often this season, Taiwo Awoniyi has proved he can score goals in the Premier League in his past seasons, while midfield options such as Ibrahim Sangare, James Ward-Prowse, Danilo, Nicolas Dominguez, Elliot Anderson and Ryan Yates are all superb players in the middle of the park.
They are also strong in defensive areas, with the two central defenders covered by Willy Boly and Morato, while Alex Moreno is also strong coverage for the full-backs when needed.
Nuno Espirito Santo’s Experience
Finally, you can not mention Nottingham Forest’s huge success so far this season without talking about the phenomenal Nuno Espirito Santo.
The manager has previously shown his brilliance by taking Wolverhampton Wanderers from the Championship into the European places, and he is once again pulling off a remarkable feat by taking Nottingham Forest from the relegation battle into the title race this term.
While he has not experienced a title race in the Premier League before, his experience of competing for Europe will certainly help, while his undying faith in his tactics and system will certainly help Nottingham Forest maintain consistency throughout the remainder of the campaign.
Comment below if you believe Nottingham Forest can win the EPL this season!
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