Nottingham Forest head into Sunday's Championship showdown with Huddersfield Town eager to improve on a run of form which has produced just one win in six matches.

After losing out to relegation rivals Wigan Athletic last weekend, Huddersfield travel to the City Ground sitting just one point clear of the relegation zone.

Match preview

Nottingham Forest manager Sabri Lamouchi on December 29, 2019 © Reuters

With Forest competing for a return to the Premier League, there will be few people who will question the board's decision to hand a new contract to Sabri Lamouchi.

However, the Frenchman is under pressure to repay the show of faith, with Forest having only recorded seven points from their last half-a-dozen outings at the second tier.

All things considered, the East Midlands team deserve little criticism after their draw at Sheffield Wednesday, only being forced to settle for a share of the spoils due to a last-gasp equaliser.

Nevertheless, despite a testing schedule, there would be considerable disappointment at the City Ground if Forest are not involved in the playoffs later in the summer.

Lamouchi will undoubtedly be demanding more from top goalscorer Lewis Grabban, who has netted just once in his last nine outings.

From the perspective of Huddersfield counterpart Danny Cowley, he will want his squad to improve by several levels after their hugely disappointing defeat at home to Wigan.

The game represented the ideal opportunity for the Terriers to put some much-needed distance between themselves and the relegation zone, aware that their rivals have started to improve in recent games.

As it stands, the Yorkshire side sit one point clear of danger, but they will begin Sunday's contest in the bottom three if Hull City or Middlesbrough avoid defeat on Saturday.

That scenario, in theory, should act as a wake-up call as Huddersfield look to avoid a second successive relegation, fate which has been felt by several former Premier League clubs over the years.

Nottingham Forest Championship form: DDWDLD

Huddersfield Town Championship form: DLWWLL

Team News

Huddersfield boss Danny Cowley on February 1, 2020 © Reuters

Cowley will almost certainly make alterations to his Huddersfield side, which could include a recall for Trevoh Chalobah.

As Emile Smith Rowe struggles with a minor injury, Andy King could be brought back into the team.

Providing that he shakes off a problem with his quad, Steve Mounie may earn a spot among the replacements.

Barring any late fitness issues, Lamouchi should have a fully-fit squad to choose from this weekend.

Adama Diakhaby may be preferred to Sammy Ameobi on the left flank, while Alfa Semedo could be restored to the midfield in place of Brennan Johnson.

Nottingham Forest starting lineup:
Samba; Cash, Figueiredo, Worrall, Ribeiro; Sow, Semedo; Lolley, Silva, Diakhaby; Grabban

Huddersfield Town possible starting lineup:
Lossl; Simpson, Schindler, Stearman, Toffolo; Chalobah, Hogg; Willock, King, Pritchard; Grant

We say: Nottingham Forest 2-1 Huddersfield Town

While many will have Forest prevailing in comfortable fashion, Huddersfield will be encouraged by the recent results of their hosts. Nevertheless, motivated by their window of opportunity this weekend, Forest's superior quality could shine through.

Data Analysis

Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a Nottingham Forest win with a probability of 44.25%. A win for Huddersfield Town had a probability of 29.93% and a draw had a probability of 25.8%.

The most likely scoreline for a Nottingham Forest win was 1-0 with a probability of 10.56%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 2-1 (9.03%) and 2-0 (7.77%). The likeliest Huddersfield Town win was 0-1 (8.35%), while for a drawn scoreline it was 1-1 (12.28%). The actual scoreline of 3-1 was predicted with a 4.4% likelihood. Our data analysis correctly predicted that Nottingham Forest would win this match.