Premier League: A Second Dose of Blues for Forest?

Chelsea vs Nottingham Forest

Chelsea hope to continue their impressive opening to the 2024/25 league season when Nottingham Forest are the visitors to Stamford Bridge, and the hosts will hope to kick their opponents when they are down. 

This Premier League contest brings together two teams which will be relatively pleased with their starts to the new season.

Enzo Maresca’s Blues had an impressive 4-2 win at home to Brighton to move up to fourth in the table last week, while Nuno Espirito Santo’s Forest lost their first match of the season, 1-0 at home to Fulham, and they now sit in 10^th place.  

The Premier League 2024 betting odds say Nuno’s team is about to suffer a second setback in quick succession, with the Blues priced at 1.41 here at SBOTOP. 

Talking Points

How good can Palmer get?

A clash with Brighton & Hove Albion was a good gauge of Chelsea’s progress last week and they passed the test in some style. Attacking midfielder Cole Palmer made Premier League history as the first player ever to score four goals in the first half, and the game was done at 4-2 by the break.

His hat-trick came in a devastating 11-minute spell after Georgino Rutter had given the visitors an early lead with his first goal for the Seagulls since transferring from Leeds United.

The Chelsea and England man scored a sublime free-kick to complete his hat-trick, and then scored his fourth from a setup by Jadon Sancho.

Palmer finished last season with 27 goals and 15 assists across all competitions, and he had the most goal involvements in the Premier League season with an incredible 22 goals and 11 assists.   

With six goals and four assists so far this term, he’s on target to beat last season’s epic feat, and Palmer is still only 22 years old. I wonder what Manchester City fans are thinking when they see their old boy in such wonderful form, while Kevin De Bruyne struggles to shake off injuries.

And Manchester United fans must be wondering why Sancho is playing so well, winning the penalty for Palmer’s second against Brighton and making three assists already this season. While, with four goals, Nicolas Jackson is looking like a top-flight striker, and Noni Madueke, with three goals in five games, is an exciting prospect.   

After two years of chaotic buying and underperformance on the pitch, are Chelsea under Maresca on the cusp of getting it right? As a neutral, I have to say it would be great to see the Blues join Liverpool to help Arsenal chase down Manchester City.

The Premier League is about as good as it has ever been, and Chelsea could once again play a big part in it led by ‘Cold’ Palmer.   

How will Forest react to a loss?

After starting the season in such good form with two wins and three draws from the first five games, the visit of Marco Silva’s Fulham would not have worried Nuno unduly, though the Cottagers are a seriously talented outfit.

And a Raul Jimenez penalty was enough to win the game for Fulham, as Forest largely shot blanks, unable to break down the Cottagers’ defence and registering just a single shot on target.

Morgan Gibbs-White, who was sent off with a second yellow card in a 2-2 draw with Brighton the previous week, is available again, and he will provide some creativity and ammunition for centre-forward Chris Wood, who has started strongly this season with three goals so far.  

The influential James Ward-Prowse, who joined in a deadline swoop from West Ham United, adds some real dead ball quality. Forest’s plan will be to win free-kicks and corners wherever possible to bring Wood into the game.   

History

With nine wins to three, the Blues have enjoyed the head-to-heads against Forest. But they had mixed fortunes last season, losing 1-0 at Stamford Bridge before winning a five-goal thriller at the City Ground in May, as Jackson hit a late winner.

Forest are unbeaten away this season with two wins and one draw, Meanwhile, Chelsea have won the last four games home and away, and I suspect Maresca’s team is about to make it five.  

Betting Tip

The Blues have a Europa Conference League game at home to Gent on Thursday night when the head coach is expected to rest a number of players. And with no travelling involved, it doesn’t really disadvantage the hosts.

At 4.18 to draw and 5.61 to win, the visitors have to hold out some hope, but they will be under some pressure with the thought of extending their recent lacklustre run of Premier League 2024 results.

I think that worry, combined with Chelsea’s multi-faceted attacking threat, will sink the underdogs without trace.      

 

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