Former West Bromwich Albion striker and current Sky Sports pundit Don Goodman has predicted that Newcastle United will not be able to beat Nottingham Forest in the full 90 minutes in Wednesday’s Carabao Cup clash.
Goodman reckons that boss Rafa Benitez will make things very difficult for the Championship side despite having suffered two defeats out of three already this season.
Forest have gone unbeaten so far this season, but the ex-forward still believes that the Magpies will be able to open up Aitor Karanka’s side, and has predicted a 1-1 draw between the two clubs, meaning the late drama of penalties after extra-time was scrapped for the competition.
“I think it’ll be very tight. Forest are unbeaten but they have drawn four of their five Championship games so far, while Newcastle have had it tough, having faced, and lost to, Spurs and Chelsea already,” he told Sky Sports.
“Rafa will keep it tight and make things really difficult, although you’d think they might try and open up a little bit more against a Championship side. I’m going to go for a draw.”
OPINION
Managers – especially those of Premier League clubs – tend to put out a second string team for Cup games such as these, depending on how seriously they want to take the competition. It is unlikely that Benitez will field a full strength team on Wednesday night, as he will not want to risk his best players ahead of their league clash with Manchester City this weekend. However, Goodman has predicted a 1-1 draw, but United will definitely have the edge over their second tier counterparts in this game. Forest have had a promising start to the season, but Benitez’ men will have that little bit extra. However, it also depends on whether Karanka fields a strong Forest side or whether he opts to give other players a run out. Nevertheless, you can never tell what can happen in a Cup game, so it would not be surprising to see a close contest between the pair.
