Will Forest finish in the Premier League's top four?
The last time that English Premier League side Nottingham Forest were in third place in the top tier of men's professional football was in the 94/95 season when Stuart Pearce was the manager.
In other words, they have waited thirty years to be this close to winning England's most coveted league trophy in domestic football. The question being asked here is, will Forest finish in the top four by the end of the season?
Let's dive straight in to find out.
Can Forest finish in the top four by the end of the current 2024/25 EPL campaign?
The quickest, easiest, and most reliable way to determine if Nottingham Forest can secure a top-four spot by the end of the 24/25 campaign is to look at what today's most trusted online bookmakers are currently offering for this particular market.
If, for example, you live in South Africa, the safest place you can turn to for the most highly competitive EPL sports betting odds is the official 10Bet iGaming website. Liverpool, Arsenal, Manchester City, and Nottingham Forest are the four teams most likely to finish in the top four this season.
In fact, Liverpool are pretty much guaranteed a spot in the top four, meaning you can't actually bet on this particular market.
Here are the latest odds for the other three teams who should also join Liverpool in the top four, meaning they would also secure European football next year and qualify for the UEFA Champions League group stage if they can finish second, third or fourth:
- Bet type: 2024/25 EPL season finishing position (top 4). Team: Arsenal. Odds: 1/40 (fractional), 1.03 (decimal), -4,000 (American/moneyline). IPR (implied probability rate): 97.60%
- Bet type: 2024/25 EPL season finishing position (top 4). Team: Manchester City. Odds: 11/20 (fractional), 1.55 (decimal), -182 (American/moneyline). IPR: 64.50%
- Bet type: 2024/25 EPL season finishing position (top 4). Team: Nottingham Forest. Odds: 9/4 (fractional), 3.25 (decimal), +225 (American/moneyline). IPR: 30.80%
In other words, it's looking fairly certain that Arsenal and Man City will finish in the top four, but not so certain for Forest. For example, Newcastle United could just as easily make it into the top four instead of Forest.
They are currently priced at EVENS (1/1 in fractional odds), which is 2.00 in decimal odds, and +100 in American/moneyline odds, meaning they have a 50.00% IPR, and Chelsea are currently priced at 13/20 (1.65 or -154) to finish in the top four, with a 60.60% implied probability rate.
Current form and upcoming fixtures
Nottingham Forest have played 21 games so far this season. They have won 12, drawn 5, lost 4, scored 30 and let in 20, which gives them 41 points and a 10+ goal difference (GD).
In comparison, second-place Arsenal are on 43 points, and league leaders Liverpool are out in the lead with 47 points.
In their first game of the new year, Nottingham Forest travelled away to play Wolverhampton Wanderers in the league and won 3-0. Morgan Gibbs-White and Chris Wood both scored in the opening 45 minutes, and there was a late third goal in the 94th minute from Taiwo Awoniyi.
Their next game was at home to Luton Town in the FA Cup on January 11th, which they won 2-0. Their most recent fixture was against Liverpool on January 14th.
Chris Wood opened the score sheet in the 8th minute to put Forest 1 nil up, and they held on until the 66th minute when Diogo Jota equalised for Liverpool within his first touch after being on the pitch for just 15 seconds. The game ended in a 1-1 draw.
Their next game is at home on Sunday, January 19th, when they host Southampton before travelling away on January 25th to play Bournemouth, followed by Brighton at home on February 1st, and then Exeter City away in the fourth round of the FA Cup on February 8th.
Final thoughts
Nottingham Forest are currently in fine form thanks to key players such as Chris Wood, Anthony Elanga, Morgan Gibbs-White, James Ward-Prowse, Matz Sels, Nikola Milenkovic, Neco Williams, Anthony Elanga, Ryan Yates, and Elliot Anderson, to name a few.
There are 17 games left before the end of the season, and many optimistic fans believe that 2025 is the year they can finish in the top four. However, Newcastle United, Chelsea, and Manchester City will be hot on their heels and won't make it easy for Forest.
In some of their other upcoming fixtures, they also face Fulham, Newcastle, Arsenal, Manchester City, Ipswich Town, Manchester United, and Aston Villa, meaning there are some tough fixtures ahead. It will be interesting to see how Forest can do this year, and it would be an incredible turnaround, considering they finished 17th in the league at the end of last season.