Nottingham Forest vs Luton Town Prediction: Hosts to record another clean sheet

Taking a break from their Premier League title charge, Nottingham Forest are in FA Cup third round action on Saturday (15:00) as they welcome Championship outfit Luton Town to the City Ground. The Tricky Trees have won six games on the bounce heading into this game so they will be full of confidence. 

The Hatters arrive here after four consecutive losses and they have since parted ways with head coach Rob Edwards, who departed on Thursday. It was a sad end for a big figure in Luton's recent history but his team have fallen short of expectations in the second tier so far. Below you will find my Nottingham Forest vs Luton Town prediction, alongside the latest team news and match odds.

Nottingham Forest vs Luton Town Odds

Forest are priced at 4/11, which has an implied probability of 73.3% to win this tie inside 90 minutes, which seems fair because they've won five of their last six home matches in the top flight.

It's 7/1 for Luton to cause an upset in regulation time but this price still feels short considering the visitors have won just one away game in the Championship all season. The draw is on offer at 4/1, which has struck at the City Ground twice this season, and both those results were back in August.

Six of the hosts' nine league games at home have produced under 2.5 goals, so there could be some value in backing this market at 10/11 for Saturday. The Tricky Trees have also kept clean sheets in each of their last four matches, and it's 9/10 for them to record another shutout against Luton.

Football Odds

Team News

Nottingham Forest remain without the services of  Ibrahim Sangare (hamstring) due to injury, and he is not expected back for a while. Fellow midfielder Danilo could be involved for the first time since his ankle injury back in August.

Boss Nuno Espirito Santo was able to welcome back captain Ryan Yates in the win at Wolverhampton Wanderers on Monday.

The midfielder came on in the second half, so he could be in line to start this cup tie. Murillo and Callum Hudson-Odoi were considered slight doubts for that game but both were able to start.

Striker Chris Wood set another club record against the Old Gold with his goal on Monday. He has become Forest's highest Premier League goalscorer under a single manager, with 23 scored since Nuno took charge in December 2023. He has surpassed the 22 netted by Stan Collymore under Frank Clark.

The New Zealand international could be given a well-earned rest against Luton ahead of a gargantuan clash with league leaders Liverpool in midweek. This should present a rare start for Taiwo Awoniyi up front, who wrapped up Monday's win in stoppage time.

There could be several changes to the Forest side because of the game that follows, so the likes of Morato, James Ward-Prowse, Willy Boly, Alex Moreno, Jota Silva and Ramon Sosa could all be promoted from the bench.

For Luton, they remain without the services of  Teden Mengi, Reece Burke, Alfie Doughty, Shandon Baptiste and Tom Lockyer due to injury. Jordan Clark was well enough to make the bench at Queens Park Rangers on Monday, having been forced to withdraw the game at Norwich the previous Wednesday.

He will be pushing for a return to the starting lineup here, as will the likes of Elijah Adebayo, Cauley Woodrow, Jacob Brown and Tom Krauss.

Nottingham Forest to win to nil @ 11/10

Forest have won six games on the spin in the Premier League and they have kept clean sheets in each of the last four in that run. They have been strong defensively, limiting their opponents' chances at goal, but when teams have found space, goalkeeper Matz Sels has been up to the task.

I think this bodes well for them recording another victory and shutout against a side struggling in the division below, and who have won just once away from home in 13 attempts in the second tier.

Even with wholesale changes, I think the Tricky Trees will have too much for the wailing Hatters and this should be a comfortable cup tie to see them through to the fourth round.

Additionally, four of their last six home matches have seen them win to nil, so I think this market is a smart pick up for the weekend.

Taiwo Awoniyi anytime goalscorer @ 9/10

Due to the incredible form of Wood, Awoniyi has found his chances limited at Forest, which is hard to believe because he was their main man up front before his injury troubles last season.

One would expect him to start against Luton so Wood can recuperate ahead of the huge home clash with Liverpool in midweek. It would come at a good time, too, after Awoniyi opened his account for the season in the dying seconds at Wolves on Monday.

This will have given him a huge lift and he will be hoping to showcase more of his abilities out on the pitch against Luton. He knows he has a lot to do to overtake Wood as the first-choice striker, but we have seen before that he has the attributes to be a star at this level.

Work will be needed to get him back to how he was before the physical issues of last season, but he is more than capable of rediscovering that form and that goal on Monday night might just have been the catalyst he needed.

Offers

Acca Flex: Place a pre-match 5+ leg Football accumulator and get a CASH bonus up to 100% if all of your selections win or your money back as CASH if one leg lets you down

Place an In-Play single bet of £10 or more at odds of 1/2+ on any FA Cup game on Saturday and get £5 in Free Bets to use In-Play on Sunday’s FA Cup games. (Credited upon Bet Settlement)