On April 5, 2025, Villa Park in Birmingham will host the 31st round of the English Premier League, where Aston Villa will take on Nottingham Forest. I recommend betting on a handicap for one of the teams in this match.
Match Preview
Aston Villa
Aston Villa is enjoying an excellent season, particularly in cup competitions. Under the management of Unai Emery, the team has advanced to the Champions League quarter-finals, having defeated Belgian side Club Brugge in the last 16. Now, Villa faces PSG, who knocked out Liverpool in the previous round.
Villa has also made it to the FA Cup semi-finals, where they will play Crystal Palace at Wembley later in April, with a spot in the final up for grabs.
However, despite success in other tournaments, Villa has had difficulty maintaining consistent results in the Premier League. The race for European spots is intense, and in their last match, they secured a convincing 3-0 victory over Brighton, which allowed them to move ahead of the Seagulls in the standings and reduce the gap to the top five to just two points.
With no easy matches remaining, Villa’s focus is now on balancing their European and domestic aspirations. The clash with Nottingham comes right before their first leg against PSG. How Unai Emery’s rotation strategies will hold up during this crucial part of the season remains to be seen.
Nottingham Forest
Like Villa, Nottingham Forest will also be heading to Wembley for an FA Cup semi-final. However, they face Manchester City — a formidable opponent in their bid for a spot in the final.
Forest has had an impressive run in the Premier League, climbing to third place. In their last match, they managed to defeat Manchester United 1-0, even without their top scorer Chris Wood. The winning goal came from Anthony Elanga, a former United academy product, who Forest signed in the summer of 2023.
This victory further strengthened Forest’s hold on their Champions League spot, and they are now closer to second-place Arsenal than their closest competitors. As the season progresses, Forest has a relatively easier schedule compared to other top contenders, with key away matches against Tottenham, West Ham, and Brentford, besides this trip to Birmingham.
Nottingham, having accomplished its objectives for the season, could be one of the biggest surprises in English football this year and may be heading toward a Champions League return.
Possible Lineups
Aston Villa: Martinez, Cash, Disasi, Mings, Maatsen, Tielemans, Kamara, McGinn, Ramsey, Malen, Watkins
Nottingham Forest: Sels, Williams, Murillo, Milenkovic, Morato, Yates, Anderson, Elanga, Gibbs-White, Danilo, Awoniyi
Match Facts and Head-to-Head
- Villa is currently on a seven-match winning streak.
- Nottingham is unbeaten in their last six matches.
- Villa has lost just one home match this season in the Premier League, a 2-0 defeat to Arsenal.
- In the first-round encounter, Nottingham won 2-1 in a comeback victory.
- In their last five visits to Villa Park, Nottingham has not won — with two draws and three defeats.
Prediction
Given Villa’s possible rotation with a crucial match in Paris on the horizon, and considering Nottingham’s strong form, I believe the visitors can secure points here. Bet on Nottingham “not to lose” with odds of 1.8.
