Nottingham Forest welcome Liverpool in the Premier League on Saturday afternoon. James Cantrill picks out a best bet.
Football betting tips: Premier League
2.5pts Both Teams to Score ‘No’ at 9/10 (Betfair Sportsbook, Paddy Power)
Around 18:30 on Sunday October, 9, things were looking bleak for Liverpool.
After falling short in a breathless five-goal thriller at The Emirates, Jurgen Klopp’s side slumped to 10th in the Premier League table and a seemingly irretrievable 14 points behind leaders Arsenal.
They have since put seven past Rangers at Ibrox, beaten champions Manchester City 1-0 and followed it up with a win over West Ham by the same scoreline.
The Reds will be brimming with confidence as they head to the City Ground to face a Nottingham Forest side that have lost six of their last eight games.
Kick-off time: 12:30 BST, Saturday
TV Channel: BT Sport 1
Nottingham Forest 1/2 | Draw 10/3 | Liverpool 19/4
Forest have only found the net once in their last four games, pretty damning, and that is before you consider they have faced the rest of the bottom four over that period.
Brighton, Wolves and Leicester all kept the Tricky Trees at bay. This was only the latter’s second clean sheet of the season, the first coming in the EFL Cup in a stalemate against League Two side Stockport.
Steve Cooper's side also failed to find the net against a Leicester team who have shipped an average of 2.4 goals per game domestically this season.
In Forest’s most recent fixture, a trip to the south coast, they mustered an xG of only 0.23, failing to register an attempt until the 57th minute when Brennan Johnson sliced a shot out for a throw-in.
This stat is significant as it highlights that Cooper has undoubtedly made his side more defensively sound, following a humbling stint where they conceded 16 in four games, however, he has done so at the expense of offensive threat.
Prior to their back-to-back 1-0 wins goals had been synonymous with the Reds' chaotic campaign - Klopp’s side had only kept two clean sheets in their previous eight league games.
Fulham may have scored twice on opening weekend but Liverpool kept a clean sheet against fellow new boys Bournemouth, limiting them to an xG of 0.28, in their 9-0 thrashing in August; the Reds do have a bit of a reputation as flat track bullies.
Last campaign, in their fixtures against the bottom five, they kept clean sheets 80% of the time and won by an aggregate scoreline of 31-2.
Forest's toothless attack, combined with the Reds' recent revival and their record against the basement boys makes backing BOTH TEAMS TO SCORE ‘NO’ at the 9/10 available the sensible play.
Nottingham Forest v Liverpool best bets and score prediction
- 2.5pts Both Teams to Score - 'No' at 9/10 (Betfair Sportsbook, Paddy Power)
Score prediction: Nottingham Forest 0-4 Liverpool (Sky Bet odds: 10/1)
Odds correct at 1320 BST (20/10/22)
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