Nottingham Forest vs Aston Villa Bet Builder Tips: Can Forest CB’s make it eight in a row?

Two clubs with a storied past meet at the City Ground on Saturday evening (17:30, Sky Sports Main Event) as Nottingham Forest host Aston Villa in the Premier League. Both sides are level on 25 points after 15 games and only Forest's slightly superior goal difference has them in fifth place ahead of Villa (sixth).

Read on for my Nottingham Forest vs Aston Villa Bet Builder tips as I combine a few of my favourite picks into one bet.

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Nottingham Forest vs Aston Villa Odds

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Team Corners - Nottingham Forest Over 3.5

Nottingham Forest have taken 72 corners in this season's Premier League, averaging 4.8 per game. However, 59.7% (43) of those corners have been taken at the City Ground, despite Nuno Espirito Santo's side playing one fewer game on home soil.

The East Midlands club have only gone under the 3.5 mark in one league game at home this term and that was on the opening day of the 2024/25 campaign against AFC Bournemouth, who restricted the hosts to a paltry two corners taken.

Aston Villa, meanwhile, concede, on average, 3.9 corners per game, but that rises to 4.7 when just looking at their away matches. The Villans have given away at least four corners in 51.7 per cent (four) of their seven away outings so far, with only Leicester City (one), Liverpool (two) and Chelsea (three) failing to clear over 3.5 corners taken, and the last two teams named were both in front inside 20 minutes and could perhaps afford to take their foot off the gas a little.

Admittedly, Forest failed to win a corner in last season's corresponding fixture which they won 2-0, but Ola Aina had put them in front inside five minutes while Oriel Mangala doubled their lead two minutes after half-time, and it was a game dominated by Villa. Nuno wasn't in charge for that meeting, either, but he was for Villa's 4-2 victory over the Tricky Trees on February 24 when the visitors won a couple of corners at Villa Park.

Player Stats - Murillo (NFO) 1+ Shots

This selection will be of little surprise to anyone who has followed my Forest previews in the last couple of months. After failing to register a shot in his first six Premier League outings this term, Forest centre-back Murillo has now had an effort in each of his last nine competition appearances, racking up 13 shots in that run including one against Manchester United at Old Trafford last Saturday.

The Brazilian is a real nuisance to opposition defenders at attacking set-pieces while he's also shown a penchant for the spectacular, trying his luck from range, so even if Villa keep him quiet at corners and free-kicks, don't be surprised to see the 22-year-old venture forward and shoot from distance.

Player Stats - Nikola Milenkovic (NFO) 1+ Shots

I've shown a lot of love to Murillo lately, but less so to his centre-back partner, Nikola Milenkovic, who is proving even more problematic for sides facing Forest. The summer signing from Fiorentina is averaging one shot per Premier League game and has taken at least one in his last seven appearances.

The 27-year-old has registered two or more efforts on four occasions this season and in back-to-back games this month in Manchester, shooting twice against Manchester City at the Etihad on December 4 and twice against Manchester United at Old Trafford three days later, scoring his first Premier League goal at the Theatre of Dreams.

Considering all of the above, I'm happy to back both Forest centre-backs to shoot at least once each on Saturday for the eighth consecutive game.

Player Stats - John McGinn (AVL) 2+ Shots

Moving across to the visitors, my first Villa-based selection is for influential midfielder and captain John McGinn to shoot at least twice against Forest. McGinn is only averaging 1.4 shots per game in the Premier League this season but has taken exactly three in 75 per cent (three) of his last four competition appearances and shot twice in Villa's 3-2 win at RB Leipzig on Tuesday - the fifth time in as many Champions League matches in 2024/25 that he has tried his luck twice.

Only the top-three teams - Liverpool (11), Arsenal (15) and Chelsea (18) - have shipped fewer goals than Forest (19) in the Premier League but the Tricky Trees are conceding an average of 13.7 shots per game - only seven clubs are allowing more - so Villa will believe that they can get their midfielders and attackers into positions where they can work opportunities, and McGinn could find himself in more promising situations where he can try and at least test the goalkeeper.

Player Stats - Boubacar Kamara (AVL) 2+ Fouls

The fifth and final leg of this Bet Builder centres around Villa's midfield enforcer Boubacar Kamara, who returned from a lengthy injury lay-off in October and has steadily been integrating himself back into the side but is now a fixture in the starting XI, such have been the quality of his performances.

I'm expecting the Frenchman to begin Saturday's game and that makes him a player of great intrigue in the player fouls market as he is someone who never shirks a challenge.

The 25-year-old is averaging 1.3 fouls per game in this season's Premier League - down from 1.8 in 2023/24 - despite only half (three) of his six appearances coming from the start. He committed five fouls in last Saturday's 1-0 win over Southampton at Villa Park and will be tasked this weekend with containing the talents of Morgan Gibbs-White (fouled, on average, 1.3 times per game), as well as Forest's own physical midfield man, Ryan Yates (fouled, on average, 2.1 times per game).

Kamara was booked at the City Ground last season so is worthy of consideration in the card market, too, but I'm opting to play things slightly safer and back a couple of fouls.

Offers

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