- Bournemouth won 4-1 at Newcastle last weekend
- Nottingham Forest lie third in the Premier League table
- Recommended bet: Bournemouth to win

Bournemouth versus Nottingham Forest would have been down as a relegation scrap before a ball had been kicked last summer, yet these two meet with European qualification in their sights.

Andoni Iraola's seventh-placed Cherries are unbeaten in 11 and crushed Newcastle United 4-1 away last Saturday, while third-placed Forest have won eight of their last nine.

Team news

Dango Ouattara is set to continue to lead the Cherries' line with both Evanilson (foot) and Enes Unal (knee) out for a while.

Bournemouth remain without several other players, including James Hill, Luis Sinisterra, Marcus Tavernier and Alex Scott.

 Forest boss Nuno Espirito Santo is waiting to see the full extent of Callum Hudson-Odoi's groin injury, with Jota Silva on standby to occupy the left flank if needed.

Nuno could swap Ryan Yates back in for Nico Dominguez in midfield, while Danilo and Ibrahim Sangare are still sidelined.

The stats

Bournemouth are unbeaten in 11 and have kept clean sheets in each of their last two home league games.

Forest have won eight of their last nine matches in all competitions, the one slip-up a 1-1 draw at home to Premier League leaders Liverpool.

The City Ground outfit have scored the first goal in 18 of their 22 league matches; only Man City (19) have ever done better over the opening 22 games.

Fourteen-goal Chris Wood has scored in each of his last four Premier League matches for Forest and the New Zealander has been the first match scorer nine times.

Prediction

Iraola and Nuno, front-runners alongside Arne Slot for any manager of the season accolades, pit their admirable wits against each other on Saturday.

Bournemouth, in seventh, and Forest, in third, are having seasons even their most optimistic of supporters would surely never have imagined possible.

Whether they can finish off their campaigns as they started them is another matter, but for now their followers are just enjoying the ride and it is Bournemouth's fans who may well still be celebrating this weekend.

Their 4-1 win at Newcastle last Saturday was one of the results of this season, a fully deserved advert for what they are all about. That they did it with so many players missing was even more impressive.

Iraola will work with the same squad against Forest, a side who will be happy to sit deep, soak up pressure and look to pounce on the break and strike from set-plays.

Less canny coaches have struggled to deal with it and the magnificently under-rated Iraola is canniness itself and will have his team ready.

Bournemouth boast the best home defensive record in the league and, if Dean Huijsen and Ilija Zabarnyi can do to Chris Wood what they did to Alexander Isak, then the Cherries have their own attacking tools to do the rest.

Back Bournemouth to win at 1/1 with LiveScore Bet.

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