Sheffield United vs Nottingham Forest Match Analysis and Prediction

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Sheffield United will be hosting Nottingham Forest in the first leg of their Championship playoff semi-final on Saturday, having won their final three matches of the regular season.

Although Nottingham finished five points ahead of Saturday’s hosts, the Reds lost some momentum during the last week as they narrowly missed out on automatic promotion.

With a fixture against Fulham to come on the final weekend, Sheffield United could never feel safe when it came to clinching their spot in the playoffs, particularly with more than one team having the opportunity to prevent them from achieving their target.

However, any concerns that may have surrounded the Blades and their supporters soon disappeared as Paul Heckingbottom’s side went ahead 3-0 against the champions within 25 minutes, eventually ending the game with a 4-0 victory.

The Blades would have probably preferred to have Luton Town as their opponents, which was due to materialise until Hull City’s dramatic last-minute equaliser against Forest on Saturday.

In sharp contrast, an otherwise remarkable campaign for Nottingham Forest ended with disappointment, with the Reds falling short in their bid for the top two after defeat to Bournemouth.

Having selected a similar starting lineup for much of the run-in, it was no surprise when Cooper made several changes for the trip to Hull City, with a 1-1 draw not being the worst result for a team with players requiring game time.

Although Cooper would have been quick to forget the lapse, it should only sharpen the focus within the Forest camp ahead of a game with opponents who have suffered just one home defeat since the start of November.

Despite having finished the campaign with the third-best attacking record, Steve Cooper’s side have found the back of the net more than once on just one occasion in their last five matches.

Sheffield United vs Nottingham Forest head to head

The two teams have previously met on 75 occasions across all competitions, where Forest have claimed 27 victories while Sheffield have won 25, and they have drawn in 23. Sheffield have scored 96 goals and conceded 102. In their last five meetings, both have won once while they have drawn in three.

Sheffield United 0-0 Nottingham Forest 17/03/18

Nottingham Forest 1-0 Sheffield United 17/03/18

Sheffield United 2-0 Nottingham Forest 19/04/19

Nottingham Forest 1-1 Sheffield United 02/11/21

Sheffield United 1-1 Nottingham Forest 04/03/22

Sheffield United latest home form

Sheffield have recently been on a good run of form at home, having lost just one of their five most recent matches. In their last home game, they managed to defeat Fulham 4-0 in the league. In their last five matches, they have scored seven goals and conceded just two.

Sheffield United 1-0 Queens Park Rangers 05/04/22

Sheffield United 0-0 AFC Bournemouth 09/04/22

Sheffield United 1-2 Reading 15/04/22

Sheffield United 1-0 Cardiff City 23/04/22

Sheffield United 4-0 Fulham 07/05/22

Sheffield United latest away form

Sheffield have recently failed to keep a good run of form on the road, having won just one of their seven most recent matches. They defeated Queens Park Rangers 3-1 in their last away game in the league. In their last five matches, they have scored five goals and conceded seven.

Coventry City 4-1 Sheffield United 12/03/22

Blackpool 0-0 Sheffield United 16/03/22

Stoke City 1-0 Sheffield United 02/04/22

Bristol City 1-1 Sheffield United 18/04/22

Queens Park Rangers 1-3 Sheffield United 29/04/22

Nottingham Forest latest home form

Nottingham have recently been on a good run of form at home, having won each of their four most recent matches. Their last home defeat came 1-0 to Liverpool on March 20 in the FA Cup. In their last five matches, they have scored 13 goals and conceded just two.

Nottingham Forest 0-1 Liverpool 20/03/22

Nottingham Forest 2-0 Coventry City 06/04/22

Nottingham Forest 2-0 Birmingham City 09/04/22

Nottingham Forest 4-0 West Bromwich Albion 18/04/22

Nottingham Forest 5-1 Swansea City 30/04/22

Nottingham Forest latest away form

Nottingham have recently failed to keep a good run of form on the road, having won just two of their five most recent matches. They drew 1-1 with Hull City in their last away game in the league. In their last five matches, they have scored three goals and conceded three.

Luton Town 1-0 Nottingham Forest 15/04/22

Peterborough United 0-1 Nottingham Forest 18/04/22

Fulham 0-1 Nottingham Forest 26/04/22

AFC Bournemouth 1-0 Nottingham Forest 03/05/22

Hull City 1-1 Nottingham Forest 07/05/22

Sheffield United news

Having defeated Fulham last time out, Heckingbottom is likely to prefer selecting the same starting lineup on Saturday.

George Baldock, who has not featured since April 18, is an option at right wing-back but will likely remain on the substitutes’ bench, while Billy Sharp continues to deal with a calf injury.

Nottingham Forest news

Cooper hopes to have Ryan Yates, Steve Cook and Jack Colback available with the trio all dealing with minor injury issues, while Sam Surridge and Johnson could return in attack.

Keinan Davis and Lewis Grabban are expected to remain on the sidelines, with Max Lowe injured and ineligible to face his parent club.

Prediction and Odds

Following their impressive victory over Fulham at the weekend, Sheffield United enter the contest full of momentum and they are not likely to fall for a defeat.

However, some of the players within the Forest camp are well rested, which could aid them to claim at least a point from this contest.

Odds: 1 2.15 X 2.05 2 2.30