Crystal Palace vs Nottingham Forest Predictions

Crystal Palace vs Nottingham Forest predictions for this Premier League clash. Crystal Palace host Nottingham Forest at Selhurst Park on Sunday for their first home Premier League match of the season, seeking to build early form in South London. Read on for all our free predictions and betting tips.

Premier League | Aug 24 2025 at 2:00 pm UK at Selhurst Park

Crystal Palace vs Nottingham Forest Predictions

Can Selhurst Park witness another tense battle between Palace and Forest?

• Palace’s home struggles: Crystal Palace have lost 12 of their last 16 opening home Premier League matches, finding the net only once in nine years at this stage.
• Forest’s travelling strength: Nottingham Forest won 10 away matches last season, a tally bettered only by Arsenal and Liverpool, proving their effectiveness on the road.
• Draw specialists: Six of the last eight meetings between these two sides have ended all square, with four finishing by a 1-1 scoreline.

Best Bet for Crystal Palace vs Nottingham Forest

Football at Selhurst Park is never dull, but this weekend it feels more like a heavyweight grudge match than a routine league fixture. Crystal Palace, bruised by their humiliating demotion from the Europa League to the Conference League due to ownership issues, are back in front of their home supporters and they welcome Nottingham Forest, the very club who benefitted from Palace’s misfortune. The bitterness between the two sets of fans is palpable, and the drama off the pitch might just add a few extra decibels to the noise in South London on Sunday evening.

Palace’s mood isn’t helped by the near-certain exit of their talisman Eberechi Eze, who didn’t even feature in the midweek European tie. His absence is as symbolic as it is tactical – it feels like a dagger to the supporters’ hopes just days before the transfer window shuts. Forest, on the other hand, arrive with a spring in their step after dismantling Brentford 3-1 on the opening day, with Chris Wood looking like a striker reborn. Add in their impressive away record last season – bettered only by Liverpool and Arsenal – and suddenly the visitors carry the aura of a side who don’t fear the capital.

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Best Bet for this match

Here at BettingTips4You we like to keep it simple – one game, one ultimate prediction. No scattergun approach, no leaving you drowning in conflicting options. After weighing up every angle, our Best Bet for this clash is Both Teams to Score.

Why? Because it just ticks every box for this fixture. Palace might have lost their creative heartbeat in Eze, but they are still a team who create chances, particularly with Mateta finding a rich vein of form. He netted again in Europe on Thursday, and his movement will cause Forest’s defence real problems. On the other side, Forest carry immense firepower with Morgan Gibbs-White pulling strings and Wood already looking sharp. They’ve bolstered their attack with Kalimuendo and Hutchinson too, so they’ll fancy themselves to breach any Premier League defence right now.

Even the numbers scream in favour of goals at both ends. Six of Rangers’ last seven games (different competition, but the point is similar) saw both teams net, while Forest themselves have made a habit of scoring on the road. Palace’s back three is stable but far from watertight, and you could argue that losing Eze in midfield will actually increase the pressure on their defenders.

As BettingTips4You.com expert Steve Harrington puts it:

“This fixture has stalemate written all over it, but the one thing that looks almost guaranteed is that both nets will bulge. Forest don’t travel to sit back, and Palace always seem to find a way at Selhurst Park.”

Correct score prediction

Crystal Palace 1-1 Nottingham Forest. The fixture history points firmly towards stalemates, and with both teams equipped to score but lacking the killer instinct to dominate, a cagey draw feels the most realistic.

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