IT'S all change at the City Ground as Nuno Espirito Santo takes charge of Nottingham Forest for the first time this week when they entertain Bournemouth.
Forest's owners decided to finally pull the plug on Steve Cooper who had appeared to be a dead man walking for some time, this week.
In his place comes the former Wolves and Spurs boss whose star has been on the wane somewhat recently after a disappointing spell as Tottenham Hotspur manager before a short stint among the Saudi millions at Al-Ittihad where he was best known for spending £25 million on Celtic star Jota and then immediately dumping him after not playing his countryman.
But Forest have been on a dangerous downwards spiral for some time now and they couldn't risk the drop. They have collected just one point from a possible 18 recently and have won one league game since September.
They face a Bournemouth side whose game with Luton Town was cut short last week because of the medical emergency suffered by Luton captain Tom Lockyer.
But the Cherries are in outstanding form really with four wins out of five – a draw against high-flying Aston Villa – being the only blip and three of those wins were away from home too including a 3-0 hammering of Manchester United at Old Trafford.
How the bookies view it
Bournemouth's recent good form means they are favourites here at 31/20 with Coral.
Nottingham Forest can be backed tio get Santo's era off to a good start at 7/4 with UniBet and the draw is 5/2 with William Hill.
Recent head to heads
Bournemouth won 3-2 at the City Ground last season and it was a 1-1 draw at the Vitality in the return game.
Players to watch
Forest striker Morgan Gibbs-White should know all about his new boss because he worked with him at Wolves. He's had a disappointing campaign with only one goal though and is 16/5 to double that with Paddy Power.
Former Liverpool striker Dominic Solanke has been in excellent form for Bournemouth this season and his opening goal at Old Trafford in his last match was his ninth of the season. He is 9/4 to score anytime with bet365.
Anything else catch the eye?
Forest will be praying for a new manager bounce, but the obvious pick here is an away win for in-form Bournemouth.
They are absolutely flying just now and it's particularly impressive that most of their best work has been done away from home too.
Since a 6-1 scudding from Manchester City at the start of last month, they have scored at least two goals in every game and do so again here at 11/8 with BetVictor against a leaky home defence.
This English Premier League match between Nottingham Forest and Bournemouth will be played on Dec 23, 2023 and kick off at 15:00. Check below for our tipsters best Nottingham Forest vs Bournemouth prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
