Nottingham Forest go into Nottingham Forest vs Coventry with a selection decision that looks sharper than it did a week ago. Igor Jesus turned 15 minutes off the bench against Aston Villa into a proper case for more minutes, while Dan Ndoye played 75 and did not offer the same edge in the final third. Oliver Glasner now looks set to move Forest into a 3-4-1-2.
Jesus has made the strongest case
Jesus' numbers from the Villa game are hard to ignore. He posted a 7.77 rating in that 15-minute spell, and his season rating sits at 6.84 from four appearances. Ndoye's season rating is 6.7, which helps explain why the Forest attack is leaning toward a change rather than another straight repeat of the same shape.
Glasner's preferred tweak would put Jesus alongside Liam Delap and Morgan Gibbs-White in a 3-4-1-2. He said Jesus has surely now done enough to join Delap in the final third, and that shift lines up with the way Forest have looked in the early part of the season. A cameo can be deceptive; this one was not.
Forest need a response at the City Ground
The other part of the story is more basic. The City Ground has not seen a Forest home goal this season, and Coventry arrive winless and goalless after a 5-0 defeat to Brighton & Hove Albion. That gives Forest a chance to solve two problems at once, but the first job remains getting the front line right.
Coventry's goalless start has been questioned because one source also noted their first goal against Premier League opposition came via Victor Torp's free kick in midweek. Even with that wrinkle, the preview still points to a side without a league point and without a league goal, which is the reality Forest should be attacking.
Glasner shifts from a 3-4-2-1 to a 3-4-1-2, and that is the most relevant line in the team news. Jesus has earned the nudge, Ndoye has not quite done enough to hold him off, and Forest's home run now has a chance to start changing on 19 September.
Written by Jack Mercer with AI-assisted research, cross-checked against 2 outlets. How we work →
