Chelsea v Nottingham Forest: Visitors to score in lively clash

Chelsea v Nottingham Forest
Monday 04 May, 15:00
Live on Sky Sports Premier League

Chelsea passed first test under McFarlane, but what now?

With now ex-Chelsea boss Liam Rosenior perhaps unfairly derided as the kind of "world-class basics" merchant that everyone should avoid on LinkedIn, his temporary replacement and former assistant Calum McFarlane delivered an FA Cup semi-final victory in his first game back at the helm, which raises a few questions.

If the players were capable of performing like that at Wembley, why haven't they done that for Rosenior in the last couple of months? Was the debacle at Brighton that finished off Rosenior a concerted effort to get the manager replaced? This has happened at Chelsea before, with a disillusioned group chasing out the unpopular Andre-Villas Boas. I was at AVB's final game in charge in 2012 - a 1-0 defeat to West Brom - and it was a staggering example of players downing tools.

Chelsea can still rescue a chaotic season. They have an FA Cup final against Manchester City to look forward to, and although a Champions League place could be beyond reach unless sixth spot does the trick, a European place of some sort is still salvageable.

That said, Chelsea's league form is atrocious. They have lost five league games in a row, failing to score in all five. The Blues haven't won a league game at Stamford Bridge since January, and they have taken maximum points at home just twice in the last nine attempts.

Reece James and Levi Colwill could return to the Chelsea squad, but are unlikely to start. Wingers Jamie Gittens and Estevao are both injured.

Could Forest end nightmare season with glory?

Football remains an extraordinary, dramatic sport, which is why it remains one of the most gripping TV propositions around the world. Nottingham Forest have blundered their way through four coaches this term, they have won just ten of their 34 league games, and yet they could wrap up the season by avoiding relegation and winning the Europa League.

Back-to-back Premier League wins have given Forest rare breathing space in the fight for survival, and another victory across their final four outings might be enough to rubber-stamp survival. In another dramatic twist, the East Midlands giants might survive at the expense of West Ham and their manager Nuno, who started the season at the helm of Forest.

Forest have also given themselves a great chance of reaching the Europa League final, after they edged out Aston Villa 1-0 in Thursday's semi-final first leg at the City Ground. It was a tight, fear-filled contest, decided by a Chris Wood penalty. The return from injury of the New Zealand international has been timely, and the 34-year-old target-man has netted in back-to-back games.

Forest are now on a nine-game unbeaten run in all competitions, putting together a sequence of six wins and three draws. Manager Vitor Pereira has to at least partially carry the can for Wolves' demotion this season (he delivered two points in the first ten games), but across his eight league games at Forest he has produced three wins, three draws and just two defeats.

Pereira must decide how many players he risks ahead of the trip to Villa Park, and there are doubts over Murillo, Ola Aina, Dan Ndoye, Ibrahima Sangare and Jair Cunha. Nicolo Savona, Callum Hudson-Odoi and John Victor are all out.

Goals part of 11/53.20 Bet Builder

I can't go anywhere near backing Chelsea here at 1.715/7 in the Match Odds market, given their recent league form. However, it's not clear here how distracted Forest will be by their upcoming Europa League showdown at Villa Park.

Instead, I'll put together an 11/53.20 Bet Builder which starts with backing Both Teams To Score. Forest have rattled in nine goals across their last two Premier League games, and have scored at least once in six of their last seven top-flight matches. Forest have found the net in their last eight Premier League away games.

Then I'll back the in-form Morgan Gibbs-White to have at least one shot on target. The Forest captain is trying to catch the eye of England boss Thomas Tuchel ahead of the World Cup, and has had at least one shot on target in 10 of his last 11 Premier League matches.

Finally, I'll back Joao Pedro to have a shot on target. The Brazilian has hit the target at least once in nine of his last 12 competitive games for Chelsea.

I'll also back Gibbs-White to score at 16/54.20 on the Sportsbook or an even healthier 4.67/2 on the Exchange. He has found the net in five of his last seven Premier League games, and he netted a hat-trick against Burnley.

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