Stoke vs Nottingham Forest
29th December 2000hrs
Football – England – Championship
Pick Draw
Bookmaker William Hill
Odds: 29/20 odds taken 2016 GMT Monday, 28th December
Stoke are proving to be a very tough side to beat at the moment in the Championship as they are targeting the top six.
There’s a home advantage for them in midweek as they step back into action. They will play host to Nottingham Forest who are just above the drop zone.
But Forest have been showing a little bit of resilience recently as well, going undefeated in their last three league games.
Table of Contents
Stoke Preview – Will the Potters make it count at home?
Stoke are undefeated in their last four Championship games, drawing three of those. On Boxing Day they played out a 0-0 draw at Coventry.
There has been a severe lack of goals recently from the Potters, who have returned just one in their last four games only.
But on a positive side, Stoke have earned a clean sheet in seven of their last eight league games.
They have only taken one win in their last five fixtures, however.
For Tuesday’s match Stoke are 29/20 to pick up the match win* (odds recorded 2016 GMT Monday, 28th December).
The home form of Stoke is at W5 D2 L3 this season and they have won two of their last three such fixtures.
Their last two home wins have been by a 1-0 scoreline which is a trend that may be worth visiting for football betting.
A Stoke 1-0 correct score option is at 5/1* (odds recorded 2016 GMT Monday, 28th December).
In their last four home games against Nottingham Forest, Stoke are W2 D1 L1.
All five of the home wins that Stoke have recorded this season have been by a one-goal margin.
Seven of the nine wins combined by the Potters have been by that margin as well.
In six of their ten home games, this season Stoke have been leading at the half time break, which is a high return.
That correlates with them having scored 68% of their home goals this season in the first half of matches.
Stoke have hit the back of the net in each of their last nine league home fixtures.
While they have taken a clean sheet in 30% of their games, it has been their most recent defensive output which looks likely to see them avoid defeat.
Nottingham Forest Preview – Can Forest crack Stoke’s mean defence?
Forest played out a 0-0 draw at home against Birmingham on Boxing Day, their second draw on the spin.
It is a three-match undefeated streak from them (W1 D2).
But the lone win in that sequence and their only win in their last ten league games (D3 L6) happened against Sheffield Wednesday.
The Owls are currently in the drop zone.
Away from home, this season in the Championship Nottingham Forest have had a tough time.
They have taken only one point from the last six on the road.
They will head to Stoke as the 21/10 underdogs for the victory on Tuesday night* (odds recorded 2016 GMT Monday, 28th December).
One of the big issues for Nottingham Forest is their lack of scoring. They are only averaging 0.67 goals per league game this season.
Away from home, they have scored just four goals in their W1 D2 L7 road record.
It has been a failure by them to score in six of their ten away games this season.
In their five away games played against teams currently in the top ten like Stoke are, Forest have lost, scoring one goal in that sequence.
So it is a big stretch to get to the point where they come away with three points in midweek.
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Nottingham Forest have scored all four of their away goals in this campaign in the second half of matches.
But they have also conceded 71% of their away goals in the second period of matches.
There has not been a clean sheet earned by Forest way from home in their last seven.
Just to take a look at the overall picture, Forest currently have the joint-worst away record in the second tier.
Only three teams have produced fewer goals than they have done as well.
Stoke vs Nottingham Forest Betting Advice
Even though Stoke don’t seem to know where the back of the net is at the moment, we see them getting the win.
So the Stoke 29/20 outright odds takes our fancy right out of the gate for football betting* (odds recorded 2016 GMT Monday, 28th December).
This should be a low scoring game, and we don’t see Stoke getting anything more than a one-goal winning margin.
Key Facts – Stoke vs Nottingham Forest Betting Tip
- Stoke have six clean sheets in their last seven league games
- Stoke have only lost one their last eight
- Nottingham Forest have scored 4 goals in 10 away games
Neither team is scoring well at the moment, but Forest doesn’t look likely to break down Stoke’s mean defence.
That’s the key to this one we think so the Stoke 1-0 correct score option looks a sound enough option at 5/1 to have a go at some extended odds* (odds recorded 2016 GMT Monday, 28th December).
The best betting odds for Stoke vs Nottingham Forest
Stoke to win: 29/20 at Bet365
Draw: 21/10 at Bet365
Nottingham Forest to win: 21/10 at Bet365
