At Selhurst Park in London, on Sunday, August 24, Crystal Palace host Nottingham Forest in the second round of the Premier League 2025/26. The season so far has brought nothing but joy for the home side: after winning the FA Community Shield on August 10 by beating Liverpool in the final, the Glaziers held Chelsea to a 0-0 draw in their Premier League opener. Their latest success came on Thursday, August 21, when they defeated Norwegian side Fredrikstad 1-0 in the first leg of the Conference League play-off. A narrow victory that doesn’t guarantee qualification but leaves Palace with a clear advantage ahead of the second leg. Before thinking about Norway, however, Oliver Glasner’s men must focus on the tough league clash against Nottingham Forest. His goal is to capitalize on Palace’s good form to secure their first three points of the season, reaching four after two matches. In the long run, the Eagles aim to improve on the 12th place achieved last season, which nonetheless ended with their historic FA Cup triumph — the first major trophy in the club’s history. Nottingham Forest arrive in South London with a clear mission: win their second consecutive match and head into the August 31 clash against West Ham with a perfect record. Nuno Espirito Santo’s men started convincingly, beating Brentford 3-1 thanks to a brace from Chris Wood and Ndoye’s first goal in a Forest shirt after his €40m move from Bologna. With the expected arrival of Douglas Luiz from Juventus — a player who made a big impact at Aston Villa — the Tricky Trees are facing a real test. If they come through it, they could establish themselves as one of the potential surprises of the Premier League 2025/26.

Crystal Palace's recent form and key stats

Crystal Palace remain unbeaten at the start of this season, with two draws and one win across all competitions. The team’s main strength has been its defense, keeping clean sheets against Chelsea and Fredrikstad in their last two matches.

The Glaziers will also try to rely on their home advantage. Including the end of last season, they are unbeaten in their last six Premier League home games (four wins and two draws). Ahead of the clash with Forest, however, Glasner has a packed injury list: Riad, Nketiah, Doucouré, Kporha and Matheus Franca are all sidelined.

Nottingham Forest's recent form and key stats

After a poor pre-season, Nottingham kicked off the Premier League campaign in style with a 3-1 win over Brentford. Espirito Santo’s men silenced critics of their attacking play by scoring three goals in one match, after netting just once in seven summer friendlies.

Looking back to the end of the 2024/25 season, the Tricky Trees have lost only one of their last six away games across all competitions, including a 1-1 draw at Selhurst Park on May 5. For the August 24 clash, Forest arrive almost at full strength: the only absentee is midfielder Domínguez, out with a knee injury.

Crystal Palace vs Nottingham Forest prediction and tactical overview

Crystal Palace have shown solid defensive organization at the start of this season: in three games they have kept two clean sheets and conceded only twice (both against Liverpool in the Community Shield). The attack, however, has been less impressive, scoring just once in their last two matches.

Nottingham Forest, including pre-season, have kept five clean sheets in their last eight games, thanks largely to the growing partnership between Milenkovic and Murillo at the back. This suggests we’ll see two compact sides who prioritize defensive stability.

For this reason, the expectation is for a balanced match with goals, but fewer than four overall. It’s also worth noting that Crystal Palace could slow the tempo considerably in the second half to conserve energy for Thursday’s trip to Norway.

• Crystal Palace vs Nottingham Forest prediction by BetMines: Under 3.5 goals with 74% probability
  
  
• Crystal Palace vs Nottingham Forest prediction by BetMines: Over 3.5 goals with 26% probability

Probable lineups Crystal Palace vs Nottingham Forest

CRYSTAL PALACE (3-4-3): Henderson; Richards, Lacroix, Guehi; Munoz, Wharton, Hughes, Mitchell; Sarr, Mateta, Devenny. Coach: Oliver Glasner

NOTTINGHAM FOREST (4-2-3-1): Sels; Aina, Milenkovic, Murillo, Williams; Yates, Anderson; Ndoye, Gibbs-White, Hudson-Odoi; Wood. Coach: Nuno Espirito Santo