Nottingham Forest take on Porto in the second leg of their Europa League quarter-final at the City Ground this week
Nottingham Forest’s Igor Jesus and Murillo(Image: PA)
Nottingham Forest will have their sights set on reaching the Europa League semi-finals when they host Porto at the City Ground this week.
The quarter-final tie between the two sides is delicately poised after last week’s 1-1 first leg draw in Portugal. It is all set up for a mouth-watering decider on the banks of the Trent on Thursday (8pm kick-off).
Vitor Pereira’s men will hope home advantage comes into play in their bid to reach the last four of the competition. Porto will be tough opponents, however, and it promises to be a fiercely-contested affair.
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The Reds head coach has some big selection decisions to make when it comes to naming his starting XI. He will no doubt have an eye on Sunday’s huge Premier League clash at home to Burnley and may well rotate his squad.
Moreover, five players will be walking something of a disciplinary tightrope against Porto. Pick up a booking and the quintet would miss the semi-final first leg, if Forest do progress.
Defenders Murillo and Morato, No.10 Morgan Gibbs-White, midfielder Ryan Yates and striker Igor Jesus are all a yellow card away from a suspension. They would miss the next Europa League match, if booked.
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The slate is then wiped clear once the quarter-final stage of the competition has been completed. According to Article 63.03 of UEFA’s regulations, “single yellow cards and pending suspensions are always carried forward to the next stage of the competition,” except, “yellow cards expire on completion of the play-offs and then on the completion of the quarter-finals”.
The Reds are unbeaten in five games in all competitions ahead of the midweek fixture. They drew 1-1 with Aston Villa at the City Ground on Sunday thanks to Neco Williams’ equaliser.
Villa are also in Europa League quarter-final action this week and hold a 3-1 advantage over Bologna going into their second leg. If both Premier League sides progress, they will meet each other in the semi-finals of the tournament.
Ahead of the game, midfielder Elliot Anderson missed Wednesday morning’s training session at the Nigel Doughty Academy for personal reasons. It is not known if the England international will be available to face Porto.
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