Will Nottingham put a stop to the next top team?

Last season, Nottingham Forest had to worry about staying in the Premier League for a relatively long time. This season, however, coach Nuno Espirito Santo’s team is one of the positive surprises. With only two defeats in the first eleven matchdays, the “Garibaldi Reds” are in an excellent fifth place and are thus, among other things, level on points with the reigning runners-up from London. For the direct duel between Arsenal and Nottingham, a bet on the underdog is still associated with a great deal of risk.

Although the “Gunners” are not in good shape after four winless PL games, the existing discrepancy in terms of squad quality and home advantage still allows the pendulum to swing quite clearly in the direction of Arsenal vs. However, it cannot be ruled out that Mikel Arteta’s charges will have to stretch themselves and exercise patience to get the three points.
Speaking of Arteta: the Spanish head coach will be at the side of the Arsenal FC in the 250th competitive game on Saturday afternoon. This not only makes him the tenth coach in “Gunners” history to reach this milestone, but also statistically the most successful with 146 wins so far. The capital city team have won 58.6% of all competitive matches with Arteta.

However, with the odds on a home win just exceeding 1.40 for the 12th matchday of the Premier League between Arsenal and Nottingham at the weekend, you should think carefully about whether it wouldn’t make more sense to put together bets with the “Betbuilder”. This is possible, for example, at Merkur Bets. You can also get an attractive new customer bonus at Merkur Bets.

Arsenal – Statistics & current form

Arsenal Football Club is currently going through a difficult phase. The “Gunners” have recently failed to win four consecutive Premier League games, managing to collect only two out of a possible twelve points. By way of context, this winless streak is the longest in the English top flight in almost exactly four (!) years.

The fact that the Londoners had previously won 21 of the previous 25 PL matches (three draws, one defeat) underlines the dip in form, which has led to them falling nine points behind league leaders Liverpool in the race for the PL championship and having to start thinking smaller.

Arsenal will return to winning ways at home

The fact that Arteta’s team are at home on Sunday afternoon and are playing against a favorite opponent at that, offers some hope that the run of poor results will come to an end. The Red & Whites have won six of their last seven PL games against Forest and are still unbeaten in eight matches across all competitions at their own Emirates Stadium in 2024/25. Six wins are offset by two draws. Half of the six successes were recorded with a clean sheet.

For the top-of-the-table clash between fourth and fifth-placed Arsenal and Nottingham, the odds for a clean sheet victory for the favorites are also of interest to me. If you narrow down the result to a 1-0, 2-0 or 3-0 win, you can get a top rate of 2.45 at Winamax.

Meanwhile, Kai Havertz is a potential scorer, especially since the German international – unlike many of his colleagues – was given limited game time during the international break and has also scored all four of his goals this season at home. A Havertz goal brings 2.30 with it on the Bet-at-Home app.

Nottingham – Statistics & current form

As the 17th team in the table, Nottingham Forest Football Club only just managed to avoid relegation last season. Despite being docked four points for breaching financial fair play rules, the “Tricky Trees” left three clubs behind them and secured a place in the English top flight for another season.

In the current season, however, Forest seem to have about as little to do with the relegation battle in the Premier League as the FDP has to do with possible government tasks after the new election. Coach Nuno Espirito Santo’s team has surprised across the board so far and, after eleven matches, has a strong 19 points and is in fifth place. The 1-3 home loss to Newcastle United before the international break was only the second PL defeat in 2024/25.

No other PL team has been behind for less time than Nottingham

Curiously, the East Midlands side are currently even stronger away from home than at home. Besides the true “Reds” from Liverpool, the “Garibaldi Reds” from Nottingham are the only team still unbeaten away from home. A whopping eleven points were earned from five away games. Across both seasons, Forest have not been beaten in seven (!) PL matches. In the current season, Santo’s team won 1-0 at Anfield and also scored at Chelsea and in Brighton. If you think it’s too risky to predict a home win between Arsenal and Nottingham, you can opt for 1.55 on the 1X & Under 3.5 at Betano.

Alternatively, you should consider betting on a game with few goals. On the one hand, because the “Tricky Trees” have only been behind for 102 minutes over the entire season (the lowest figure in the PL). On the other hand, only league leaders Liverpool (six) have conceded fewer goals than the surprise team (ten). In seven of 11 league games involving Forest, Under 2.5 would have come true, which in turn can be used as an argument to justify the Arsenal vs. Nottingham betting odds on Under goals.

Arsenal – Nottingham Direct comparison / H2H record

In the recent past, Nottingham Forest have not had much success against the former champions from the capital. Arsenal FC have won six of the last seven PL duels. The “Garibaldi Reds” have not won against the “Gunners” in ten matches. The underdog has lost the last four games at the Emirates Stadium. Despite their current form, there is a good chance that they will lose for the fifth time in a row on Saturday afternoon.

Arsenal – Nottingham Betting Tip

If someone had offered Nottingham Forest officials before the start of the season that they would start the 11th matchday tied on points with Arsenal FC in fifth place, they would surely have signed it with a broad grin on their faces. Completely unexpectedly, the “Tricky Trees” have had a great Premier League season so far, during which they became the first and only team to beat the leaders from Liverpool in their football temple.

Nevertheless, I believe that the underdog will not pull off another surprise coup in the capital on Saturday afternoon. The “Gunners” absolutely must return to winning ways after four games without a win and will rely on their home strength. In eight home games across all competitions in 2024/25, there were six wins and two draws.

However, since I firmly believe that the strong defense of the guests will demand everything from the home side, especially patience, I tend to combine my tip for Arsenal and Nottingham with the prediction that the Arteta team will retain the upper hand, but that a maximum of one goal will be scored in the first 45 minutes.