(Football news) Nottingham Forest and Liverpool will battle it out in the first game of the Premier League this weekend at the City Ground. Nottingham held Brighton to a goalless draw in the last match and remained in the relegation zone while Liverpool overcame West Ham 1-0 thanks to Darwin Nunez and look to have turned a corner since their win over Manchester City at Anfield.
In team news, Nottingham Forest will be without Jack Colback (back), Moussa Niakhate (thigh), Omar Richards (calf) and Harry Toffolo (hamstring) while Lewis O'Brien remains a doubt due to illness. However, Renan Lodi could be available after recovering from an ankle sprain while Serge Aurier could drop out with Neco Williams replacing him at right back. Jesse Lingard’s place in the starting lineup is at risk with either Emmanuel Dennis or Taiwo Awoniyi in contention for an attacking role.
As for Liverpool, Diogo Jota has been ruled out due to a calf injury and won’t be available for the World Cup as well while Luis Diaz is out with a knee injury and Arthur (thigh), Naby Keita (thigh), Joel Matip (calf) and Ibrahima Konate (muscle) are also unavailable for selection. Jurgen Klopp will have one eye on the crucial Champions League encounter against Ajax and could potentially rest Mohamed Salah with Harvey Elliot getting some minutes. Considering their recent form and quality, anything but a win for Liverpool would be considered a disappointing result.
Reigning Premier League champions Manchester City will look to get back to winning ways after their defeat to Liverpool when they took on Brighton & Hove Albion at the Etihad Stadium. The Citizens endured their first defeat last week while the Seagulls were held to a goalless draw against Nottingham Forest on Tuesday. Pep Guardiola will be desperate for three points in this fixture as his team are now four points behind league leaders Arsenal. A victory against Nottingham will be City’s 10th consecutive home win, becoming only the 2nd team after Aston Villa to manage this achievement.
In team news, Manchester City will be without Kyle Walker (groin) and Kalvin Phillips (shoulder) but John Stones will be available for selection, having recovered from a hamstring problem. Aymeric Laporte could get his first Premier League start of the season at the expense of Nathan Ake, Ruben Dias or Manuel Akanji. One of Jack Grealish and Riyad Mahrez could feature in the attacking three after being rested against Liverpool while Phil Foden and Erling Haaland are almost guaranteed to start.
As for Brighton, Jakob Moder is unavailable due to a knee injury while Kaoru Mitoma (ankle) and Levi Colwill (knock) are doubtful. Adam Lallana will hope to retain his place in the starting lineup alongside Pascal Gross while Trossard will feature at left-wing back ahead of Pervis Estupinan. The likes of Billy Gilmour, Tariq Lamptey and Deniz Undav will be hoping to break into the starting lineup but the rest of De Zerbi’s team are expected to remain the same from the team that featured against Nottingham Forest. A win for Manchester City is the most likely result from this fixture.
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