Europa League

2026-03-12 - Nottingham Forest vs Midtjylland

A Sports Betting Pick by Auls

Nottingham Forest v Midtyjlland
Football: UEFA Europa League Last 16 First Leg
Thursday 12th March 2026 - Kick Off 8pm
This game is live on TV

Nottingham Forest

Things have changed once again at the City Ground, but Vitor Pereira will have needed a result like the one Nottingham Forest picked up last week at Manchester City. They were far from at their best on the day, but a point is a point and Nottingham Forest will be looking to build on that over the remaining two weeks of the March schedule.

The manager knows he has been tasked with keeping Nottingham Forest in the Premier League, but Pereira also made it clear last month that the owner has stated that he needs to take the Europa League seriously as well. A route into the Champions League cannot be thrown away and Nottingham Forest saw off Fenerbahce in the Europa League Knock Out Play Off Round, even after making things tougher than expected in the Second Leg back at the City Ground.

Nottingham Forest won 0-3 in Istanbul in Vitor Pereira's first match in charge, but followed up with 3 straight defeats in all competitions before the draw at the Etihad Stadium. The side have won 1 of the last 8 home games in all competitions and Nottingham Forest have suffered consecutive defeats here against Liverpool and Fenerbahce.

Stefan Ortega was not able to play against his former club, but is hoping to be passed fit on Thursday.

Midtjylland

Being one of the Danish representatives in European competition meant Midtjylland had to begin in the opening Rounds of the Europa League Qualifiers. They have not only made their way through to the League Phase, but a high finish in the standings meant Midtjylland were able to earn a direct spot in the Last 16 of the competition and confidence will be high.

They are still chasing down Aarhus in the domestic League in a bid to earn a Champions League berth of their own, but Midtjylland have already won in the East Midlands this season in the Europa League and that will provide the squad with a real belief ahead of this tie. That result helped Midtjylland form a 2-1-1 away record in the League Phase of the competition where they scored 18 goals and conceded 8.

Midtjylland head into this tie unbeaten in their last 8 games in all competitions as they moved through the domestic Winter Break. The side have had to settle for back to back draws, but both have been at home and Midtjylland have won 3 away games in a row in all competitions.

Head to Head

Ange Postecoglou was in charge of Nottingham Forest in the 2-3 home defeat to Midtjylland in the League Phase of this competition.

That is the sole previous competitive fixture between the clubs.

Prediction

Before the March international break, Nottingham Forest have very important Premier League games against Fulham and Tottenham Hotspur to play, but the Europa League Last 16 tie is also one that Vitor Pereira has been asked to take seriously.

An early FA Cup exit means Nottingham Forest have had more than a week to prepare for this game and the relatively new manager may have appreciated the time he has been able to have on the training ground.

Vitor Pereira will know the importance of building up some momentum and there has to be an expectation of a strong Nottingham Forest team being selected. Not only have they had time to prepare, but the team just battled for a 2-2 draw at Manchester City and that will be something that Pereira can build upon as Nottingham Forest prepare to face Midtjylland for a second time this season.

It was Ange Postecoglou who oversaw the disappointing 2-3 home loss to the Danish club, but Midtjylland surprised many by picking up enough points outside of that victory to earn a spot in the Last 16 of the competition.

They have returned from the Winter Break with some positive performances, although back to back draws will have slowed some of the momentum.

Midtjylland were also something of a mixed bag away from home and they have been a team that can be attacked with some real success.

Respect will have to be given to the team for the way they have countered though and that was evident in the 2-3 win at the City Ground back in October. Midtjylland will be looking to exploit any nerves in the home stands considering Nottingham Forest's lack of recent successes here, although Vitor Pereira will feel a similar level of performance that was produced against Liverpool will give his team the advantage.

Another big home game is coming up on Sunday, which may be a slight distraction, but Nottingham Forest may be able to head into that game against Fulham with another confidence boosting result under their belts.

Nothing will come easy against this opponent, but Nottingham Forest may be able to finish on the right side of another high-scoring fixture and the home team can be backed to have a lead to take to Denmark next week for the Second Leg.