English Premier
2026-10-23 - Ipswich Town vs Nottingham Forest
A Sports Betting Pick by Auls
Football: English Premier League
Friday 23rd October 2026 - Kick Off 8pm
This game is live on TV
Ipswich Town
There will have been some big positives to take from the performance of the players, but Gary O'Neil was less impressed with some of the officiating in Ipswich Town's 3-2 defeat at Manchester City. Better decisions by the linesman might have given Ipswich Town an opportunity to earn a surprise draw at the Etihad Stadium, although the manager will have moved on and look to build on the confidence shown on the pitch.
Losing at Manchester City is not going to be where Ipswich Town's future in the Premier League is determined and the team have made a strong start to the campaign as they sit in 10th place with 9 points secured. The Tractor Boys will be returning to Portman Road on Friday and they have a 2-0-1 record here in the top flight.
Ipswich Town have lost 3 of the last 4 games in all competitions, but the exception is a 2-1 home win over Fulham on the return from the last international break. They have won 3 of the 5 games played at Portman Road in all competitions under Gary O'Neil, while the other 2 games have ended in defeat to Liverpool in the Premier League and Arsenal in the League Cup.
Sasa Lukic is hoping to be available on Friday, which will give the manager a full squad to choose from.
Nottingham Forest
He may have guided Crystal Palace to a win in his first match in charge, but Oliver Glasner will have noted the slow start to life at Selhurst Park and will be asking the Nottingham Forest fans to show some patience. They played well enough last weekend, but Nottingham Forest's defeat to Arsenal at the City Ground means the opening weeks under Glasner have been pretty difficult viewing for the supporters.
Unlike the board at Crystal Palace, Nottingham Forest have shown to be a lot more impatient when results are not as planned and so Oliver Glasner may be feeling some pressure with the team in 19th place in the Premier League table and with 5 points secured. Almost all of those points have been earned away from the City Ground where Nottingham Forest have a 1-1-1 record in the top flight.
Nottingham Forest beat Aston Villa with a late winner at Villa Park in September, but have followed up by losing 3 Premier League games in a row. The opening couple of away Premier League games produced positive results, but Nottingham Forest were beaten 3-1 at Crystal Palace a couple of weeks ago.
Morgan Gibbs-White missed out last Sunday and is considered a doubt, while both Nicolo Savona and Igor Jesus are not expected to travel.
Head to Head
Two seasons ago, Nottingham Forest did the Premier League double over Ipswich Town and also beat them on Penalties in the FA Cup Fifth Round.
The game at Portman Road ended 2-4 in favour of the visitors and means Nottingham Forest have won twice in 4 visits to this Ground, while Ipswich Town have won once in that run.
Prediction
The conditions in this part of Suffolk are going to be very difficult on Friday evening and that does make it a tougher fixture to call.
Heavy rain and very windy weather is expected at Portman Road, which may make things that much tougher for the attacking players to perform.
If the game was being played in serene conditions, you'd have to fancy goals with both Ipswich Town and Nottingham Forest showing they can trouble the scoreboard in home/away games respectively.
Overall the Nottingham Forest goal tally is poor for the season, but that is because they have yet to score at the City Ground. All five Premier League goals have been scored away from home and The Tricky Trees have scored twice at Anfield and Villa Park, while creating more than enough chances to reach that total in the 3-1 defeat at Selhurst Park.
Oliver Glasner's men have struggled with the balance needed between attack and defence- at home they have been pretty solid at the back, but struggled for consistency going forward, but Nottingham Forest have both created big chances and given up plenty of those away from the City Ground.
This has to offer Ipswich Town encouragement considering the attacking numbers being produced under Gary O'Neil, although the home team have been struggling to show a lot of resilience at the back.
The last time these two clubs met at Portman Road ended in a six goal affair and they are both capable of combining for at least half of that tally.
It is the forecasted weather conditions that dampens enthusiasm for the pick with attacking football that much harder to create in heavy wind. The rain can be an issue for defenders with mistakes likely to be made, so the selection is going to be over 2.5 goals, although not with the same belief in this pick as we perhaps would have in much more appealing conditions.
The Statistics :
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The Pick :
Ipswich Town 2-2 Nottingham Forest
