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Nottingham Forest will take on Porto on Thursday, 16 April, in what could turn out to be one of the City Ground's greatest ever nights.
This Europa League quarter-final second leg is set up nicely following the 1-1 draw in Porto last week, and both teams will fancy their chances of making it through to the semi-finals.
Read our prediction, preview and betting tips for the game below, and make sure to check out our Today's betting tips page for more of our free expert UEFA Europa League predictions.
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Nottingham Forest vs Porto key stats
- Porto have won three of their last four Europa League matches.
- Nottingham Forest have won just one of their last four European matches.
- Both teams have scored in six of Porto's last eight matches in all competitions.
Nottingham Forest vs Porto preview: Visitors to prevail
| Nottingham Forest | vs | Porto |
|---|---|---|
| 16th (Premier League) | Position | 1st (Primeira Liga) |
| 33 | Points | 76 |
| 32 | Goals For | 59 |
| 44 | Goals Against | 14 |
| 8 | Clean Sheets | 18 |
| 17th | Home Rank | 1st |
| 13th | Away Rank | 1st |
It has been an excellent couple of weeks for Nottingham Forest, who may well point to their comeback victory over FC Midtjylland in the round of 16 of this competition as the turning point of their season.
Vitor Pereira is the club's fourth manager of the season, and after a rocky start, his side now boasts a five-match unbeaten streak in all competitions.
However, it would be disingenuous to say they haven't ridden their luck at times. They created very little last week in Porto and only came away with a draw courtesy of a freak own goal and the Dragons' poor finishing.
They will need to improve this week if they are to make it through to the semi-finals, but there is every chance of a better display given that Elliot Anderson is available for selection again after serving a suspension in the first leg.
Elsewhere, Jair Cunha, Nicolo Savona, Willy Boly and John Victor remain in the treatment room, and Chris Wood is pushing for a start.
As for Porto, if they play as well as they did in the first leg, then there is every chance that they will be going back to Portugal with a Europa League semi-final to look forward to.
The Dragons had eight shots on target to Forest's two and created more than two expected goals. If they had shown more composure in front of goal, then this tie could already be over.
Francesco Farioli's side remain one of the favourites to win the competition, and they come into the match fresh off a 3-1 away win against Estoril, which edged them closer towards their first league title in four years.
Farioli remains without several key players for this one, with Luuk de Jong, Martim Fernandes, Samu Aghehowa and Nehuen Perez all ruled out through injury.
Nottingham Forest vs Porto form guide & betting tips
| Nottingham Forest | vs | Porto |
|---|---|---|
| D-W-W-D-D | Form | W-W-D-D-W |
| 7 | Goals For | 10 |
| 3 | Goals Against | 5 |
| L-W-D | Europa League | W-W-D |
Whispers predicts: Nottingham Forest 1-2 Porto
Alongside Aston Villa, Porto have been the strongest team in the competition so far this season, and they should have enough to see off a Nottingham Forest side who are perhaps prioritising Premier League safety. Porto to win has been best priced at 23/10.
Both teams to score is a solid bet for Thursday night. Five of Porto's last six European outings have seen goals go in at both ends, and BTTS is priced at 1/1.
With Samu Aghehowa out, Porto's most likely goalscorer on Thursday will be William Gomes, who opened the scoring in the return leg. Gomes is priced at 4/1 to score anytime on Thursday.
> Porto to win at 23/10 | Likelihood: Possible
> BTTS at 1/1 | Likelihood: Probable
> William Gomes to score anytime at 4/1 | Likelihood: Outsider