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January 10, 2025
While established powerhouses Liverpool and Arsenal are dominating the Premier League this season, an unexpected challenger has emerged in the form of Nottingham Forest.
After narrowly avoiding relegation last season under Nuno Espirito Santo, Forest has made a stunning turnaround, with a remarkable surge in form and results propelling them into the new year. Now, they are making a strong case as the dark horses in the 2024-25 title race, staking a serious claim for the championship.
Nottingham Forest continued their impressive run with a dominant 3-0 victory over Nuno Espirito Santo’s former side, Wolverhampton Wanderers, on Monday. This marked their sixth consecutive league win, propelling them to level points with second-placed Arsenal and just six behind league leaders Liverpool with more than half of the season played. Given that Forest were only promoted to the Premier League in 2022 and endured a tumultuous first season with a chaotic recruitment strategy that saw 30 new signings across two transfer windows, their transformation this season is nothing short of remarkable.
The recent success of Leicester City in the 2015-16 season serves as an inspiring precedent. The Foxes defied all odds, maintaining an unstoppable form throughout the campaign to secure one of the most unlikely Premier League titles in history.
With Forest not in action until they host Liverpool at the City Ground next Tuesday—having already triumphed over Arne Slot’s team at Anfield—now seems like the perfect moment to assess the plausibility of their title challenge.
Nottingham Forest’s 3-0 triumph over Wolverhampton Wanderers at Molineux extended their remarkable Premier League winning streak to six consecutive games. Since the start of December, they have also triumphed over Manchester United, Aston Villa, Brentford, Tottenham Hotspur, and Everton. This marks the first time Forest have achieved six straight wins in top-flight league matches since the 1966-67 season, when they were also in the mix for the First Division title, only to be edged out by Manchester United.
Forest have now claimed 10 victories in their last 13 Premier League matches and have been consistently positioned inside the top four since their 2-1 win over Villa on December 14. With 40 points from their first 20 games, they are already eight points ahead of their final tally from last season, when Nuno’s side finished 17th with 32 points from 38 matches.
Out of the 70 teams to have earned 40 or more points from their opening 20 Premier League games, only four have failed to finish in the top four by the season’s end. So, Forest fans, while it might be a bit premature to say it’s guaranteed, the path to UEFA Champions League qualification is looking increasingly likely. In fact, European football could very well be returning to the City Ground for the first time since the 1995-96 season.
While not quite matching the legendary Forest side of the late 1970s, who won their only league title and back-to-back European Cups, Nuno Espirito Santo’s current squad has been performing at an exceptional level this season.
A standout performer has been 33-year-old striker Chris Wood, who has rediscovered his best form and been crucial with his goals. With 12 Premier League goals in 20 games, Wood is just two goals shy of matching his career-best top-flight tally of 14 goals, which he achieved with Burnley in 2019-20 and again with Forest in 2023-24.
The New Zealand international has thrived as a physical, penalty-box poacher, offering a reliable target for teammates Anthony Elanga, Morgan Gibbs-White, and Callum Hudson-Odoi. The trio has also been in peak form, combining for nine goals and nine assists in the league, adding to Forest’s attacking potency.
Despite only scoring 29 goals (the fewest in the top half of the table), the backbone of Forest’s remarkable form this season has been their formidable defense. Centre-back pairing Murillo and Nikola Milenkovic have provided a solid foundation, while goalkeeper Matz Sels has repeatedly showcased his shot-stopping prowess.
The 3-0 victory over Wolves marked Forest’s fourth consecutive clean sheet and their ninth overall in the league, the highest of any team. It’s the first time the club has kept four consecutive clean sheets in the top flight since March 1992.
Among the players contributing to this defensive strength, only Morgan Gibbs-White was part of Forest’s massive signing spree from the club’s return to the Premier League. The others, including Milenkovic, who joined from Fiorentina in the summer of 2023, have strengthened the team significantly in more recent transfer windows.
Nuno’s appointment at Forest in December 2023 was widely regarded as an unexpected choice, especially considering his previous stint at Tottenham, where he was dismissed after just three months and 17 matches. Despite his success in guiding Wolves to the Premier League and solidifying their position in the top flight, his reputation had taken a hit following his short tenure at Spurs.
Before arriving at the City Ground, the Portuguese coach spent eight months away from football after his dismissal from Tottenham. He then took charge of Saudi Arabian club Al Ittihad in July 2022, where he enjoyed success, winning the 2022 Saudi Super Cup and securing the club’s first league title in 14 years. However, Nuno was again sacked in November 2023.
In December 2023, Forest hired Nuno after parting ways with Steve Cooper. Despite a four-point penalty for breaching the Premier League’s Profit and Sustainability Rules, Nuno steered the team to safety, mathematically confirming their survival on the final day of the season. Finishing 17th in the 2023-24 season, Nuno faced significant challenges both on and off the pitch but managed to turn a fragmented squad into a more unified team within just 18 months.
There are notable similarities between Nuno’s journey and that of Claudio Ranieri at Leicester City. Ranieri, after a disastrous spell as Greece’s national coach, was hired by Leicester in 2015, a club that had narrowly avoided relegation the previous season. Despite his rocky period with Greece—where he was dismissed after just four months, following a humiliating loss to the Faroe Islands—Ranieri went on to achieve the impossible with Leicester, leading them to an unlikely Premier League title in 2016.
By the halfway point of the 2015-16 season, Leicester City had accumulated 40 points and sat in second place. They went on to win the Premier League with a remarkable 81 points, finishing a full 10 points ahead of second-place Arsenal.
Nottingham Forest’s current position will surely excite their supporters, as they also sit on 40 points after 20 games. They are in third place, trailing Arsenal only on goal difference, a striking parallel to Leicester’s mid-season form during their title-winning campaign.
Leicester City’s next five fixtures in the 2015-16 season were as follows: Tottenham (A), Aston Villa (A), Stoke City (H), Manchester City (A), and Arsenal (A). Remarkably, they earned 13 points from a possible 15 during that stretch, further cementing their title credentials.
Forest’s upcoming run of fixtures, on paper, appears slightly more favorable. Their next five league games are against Liverpool (H), Southampton (H), Bournemouth (A), Brighton & Hove Albion (H), and Fulham (A). If they can maintain their current form, there’s every chance they could keep pace with Leicester’s impressive points haul during that period.
Of course, it’s crucial to remember that there is still much football to be played, and Forest have had their fair share of setbacks in the past. But for the first time in years, the City Ground is buzzing with a sense of optimism, and fans are allowed to dream once again.
Leicester City‘s next five fixtures in the 2015-16 season were as follows: Tottenham (A), Aston Villa (A), Stoke City (H), Manchester City (A), and Arsenal (A). Remarkably, they earned 13 points from a possible 15 during that stretch, further cementing their title credentials.
Forest’s upcoming run of fixtures, on paper, appears slightly more favorable. Their next five league games are against Liverpool (H), Southampton (H), Bournemouth (A), Brighton & Hove Albion (H), and Fulham (A). If they can maintain their current form, there’s every chance they could keep pace with Leicester’s impressive points haul during that period.
Of course, it’s crucial to remember that there is still much football to be played, and Forest have had their fair share of setbacks in the past. But for the first time in years, the City Ground is buzzing with a sense of optimism, and fans are allowed to dream once again.
Nottingham Forest do have some history in mounting title challenges, though it must be acknowledged that none of it is particularly recent.
The last time they won six consecutive top-flight matches, Forest found themselves in the midst of one of their first major title races. The 1966-67 season saw them challenge Manchester United for the old First Division title. However, their hopes of lifting the trophy were dashed with a crushing 2-1 defeat to Southampton in their penultimate match, ending their pursuit of the title.
There are several instances of Forest keeping pace with the league leaders before eventually falling short, and that is perhaps why their sole First Division title, won under the legendary Brian Clough in 1977-78, remains the club’s only top-flight championship in its 160-year history.
Clough’s triumph was nothing short of remarkable. Having guided Forest to the First Division as Second Division champions in the 1976-77 season, he led the team to the top in the following campaign, remaining unbeaten in the second half of the season and finishing seven points ahead of Liverpool. Forest’s success didn’t stop there. The club, under Clough’s leadership, went on to win back-to-back European Cups in 1978-79 and 1979-80, with narrow 1-0 victories over Malmö and Hamburg SV, respectively, marking an extraordinary period of domestic and continental glory.
Further reading: Yamal and Gavi Inspire Barcelona to 2-0 Victory Over Athletic Bilbao, Securing Spot in Spanish Super Cup Final
Katarzyna Nowak is a seasoned writer with over five years of experience in editorial content, news reporting, and cricket sportsbook app reviews. As an author for 24kbet, she combines her deep understanding of the sports betting industry with a passion for cricket, delivering insightful and accurate content that keeps readers informed and engaged.
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