I did think it would take a massive amount of good fortune for Forest’s mid season managerial switch to be effective. We’re talking about a side going from a low block, countering attacking set up to an ambitious, high line approach which is a swing that is almost impossible to implement in the middle of the season.

Forest’s early results are showing how jarring this transition is. They’ve lost four of their six matches under Ange Postecoglou and have conceded 13 goals across these games. This simply isn’t sustainable and will continue to cost Forest unless Ange adapts his system, which we know he won’t from his time at Tottenham.

On the other hand, Newcastle are a side that are growing into the season after a tough start to the campaign which was further fuelled by the club being the focus of the summer transfer window. Their 4-0 win over USG during the week will fill Howe’s side with confidence, they made a slow start to last season and still managed to finish in a Champions League spot so it’s fair to say that i’m more concerned about Forest right now than the Magpies.

Newcastle beat Forest in both head to head meetings last season. They ran out 4-3 winners at St James’ Park after recording a 3-1 win at the City Ground. I think Howe’s side will be able to come out on top again here with no immediate signs of Forest showing any defensive organisation.

These sides contested a 4-3 thriller in this fixture last season, which was eventually won by Newcastle and produced five match cards. There were 24 fouls committed by the two sides in that game, and I can see a similar tally when it comes to both metrics here.

It won’t take much for Forest to become frustrated in this game; they’ve seen 3+ match cards in four of their six matches under Ange Postecoglou so far, with the exceptions coming against Burnley and Arsenal, both games with varying dynamics that would have affected the card count.

Newcastle were one of the most fouled sides in the Premier League last season and drew a lot of cards from their opponents as a result. Their six Premier League matches this season have produced 22 total match cards (3.66 per game). 

Gordon scored twice from the penalty spot in Newcastle’s 4-0 win over USG in the Champions League during the week, with the winger having three shots in total in the game. 

Newcastle really miss Gordon whenever he isn’t in the side, as illustrated by the fact that the Magpies only scored one goal in the three Premier League games he missed in the back of his sending off against Liverpool. 

His energy is infectious, and he has had to take up a more important role in the final third now that Alexander Isak has moved away from the club.

Gordon was below his usual level last season. 11 goal contributions across his 34 appearances is steady, but Gordon is a player who should be targeting double digits for goals and assists with the quality he has.

He’s scored three goals already this season, with all three of these strikes coming in the Champions League. He has been a shot threat in the Premier League with 11 attempts across his three appearances (4.90 per 90), with four of these efforts finding the target (1.78 per 90). 

Nottingham Forest have conceded 27 shots on target across Ange Postecoglu’s first six games in charge of the club (4.5 per game).

Williams has returned to his usual role at right-back under Ange Postecoglou, having consistently played as a left back under Nuno Espírito Santo. He could be called over to that side again in this game, with Zinchenko a doubt for this clash, but it’s likely that Williams is tested regularly regardless of what side he lines up on.

If he continues in his usual role, then he’ll be up against Anthony Gordon, who has won six fouls across his three Premier League appearances so far this season (1.78 per 90). Gordon was one of the most consistently fouled players in the Premier League last season, averaging 2.61 fouls won per 90 across his 34 appearances in the top flight.

Gordon drew four fouls from Ola Aina in this fixture last season, with Forest committing 13 fouls overall in the game. Williams lined up as a left back on that occasion and contested 10 duels. He’d be up against Elanga if he lines up as a left back on this occasion. The Swedish winger was very impressive in the Champions League and was the most fouled player on the pitch (3)

Both head-to-head meetings between these sides last season produced over 2.5 goals. Newcastle ran out 4-3 winners at St James’ Park and also claimed a 3-1 win over Forest at the City Ground in the Premier League last season. Newcastle have seen over 2.5 goals in four of their last five matches across all competitions. 

Forest’s approach is a lot more front-footed now than it was in the early parts of the season, and their games have been seeing a higher level of goals as a result. Forest have seen over 2.5 goals in four of their six matches under Postecoglou, with the exceptions coming against Burnley and Sunderland - both sides that set up in a low block against Forest.

I can genuinely see Newcastle covering this line on their own, especially if Ange continues to persist with this naive high line, which he doesn’t have the players for. Forest’s centre-backs have been struggling to adapt to this new demand from the manager, which isn’t really a surprise. Forest’s defensive success was never built on the speed of their centre-backs, and asking them to push right up the pitch is causing a lot of defensive issues for Forest.

Nick Woltemade has started his Newcastle career brightly with three goals for the club so far, two of which have come at St James’ Park in the Premier League against Arsenal and Wolves. He’s a giant at 6’6, but has the technical ability of a tricky winger, making him one of the most unique strikers in Europe.

He was always going to have big shoes to fill in replacing Alexander Isak, but he’s started in a really positive manner and should continue to improve as his relationship with the other Newcastle players continues to develop. 

Woltemade scored 12 goals across just 17 starts in the Bundesliga last season, so he is a consistent goalscorer and has settled into the Premier League easily, with his size making him a real threat aerially - 32% of his shots in the Bundesliga last season were headers.

Forest have conceded 13 goals across their six games under the tutelage of Ange Postecoglou (2.16 per game). It’s fair to say that they’ve lost their defensive solidity, which Nuno spent a lot of time perfecting, and will be vulnerable to a Newcastle side coming into this game on the back of their biggest win of the season.

Morgan Gibbs-White is yet to pick up his first yellow card of the season, but it’s fair to say that he’s due one, with the Forest captain picking up nine yellow cards and one red card last season.

Gibbs-White has committed six fouls across his six Premier League appearances so far this season (1.16 per 90) but I can see that average really rising here with Gibbs-White directly in the crosshairs of Newcastle’s talented midfield trio. Newcastle drew a lot of fouls from their opponents last season; only Villa won more fouls than the Magpies, and this was largely due to the effectiveness of the midfield trio.

Bruno Guimaraes, in particular, is a magnet for foul involvement. He’s already won 14 fouls across his five Premier League appearances this season (2.80 per 90) and averaged 2.96 fouls won per 90 across his 38 appearances last season. He’s likely to be Gibbs-White’s direct opponent here, which is the perfect environment for the Forest captain to pick up his first caution of the season.