MATCH PREVIEW # EXETER CITY VS NOTTINGHAM FOREST

 Match details: Exeter City versus Nottingham Forest

Venue: St James Park, Exeter

Date: Tuesday 11th February 2025

Kick off: 8pm 

Current form (last six): 

Exeter: 

W 3-1 Oxford United (FA Cup) H

L 0-1 Birmingham City A

D 1-1 Peterborough United A

L 1-3 Blackpool H

L 2-6 Leyton Orient H

L 1-4 Stevenage A

Nottingham Forest: 

W 3-0 Wolverhampton Wanderers A

W 2-0 Luton Town (FA Cup) H

D 1-1 Liverpool H

W 3-2 Southampton H

L 0-5 AFC Bournemouth A

W 7-0 Brighton and Hove Albion H

Top scorer: 

Exeter City: Josh Magennis (14)

Nottingham Forest: Chris Wood (21)

Head to Head: 

Exeter City: 0

Draw: 2

Nottingham Forest: 2

Nottingham Forest factfile: 

Year founded: 1865

Last season's league finish: 17th in the Premier League

Nottingham Forest notable honours: 

European Cup/UEFA Champions League: Winners 1979, 1980

First Division/Premier League: Winners 1977-78

FA Cup: Winners 1898, 1959

League Cup/EFL Cup: Winners 1978, 1979, 1989, 1990 

Manager: Nuno Espirito Santo

 A goalkeeper during his playing career, Nuno represented Portugal at the 1996 Olympics and was part of the Porto squad that won the 2002/03 UEFA Cup and 2003/04 UEFA Champions League under Jose Mourinho.

He started as a goalkeeping coach after retiring in the summer of 2010, before being given his first senior coaching appointment two years later, with Portuguese side Rio Ave.

In his second season Rio Ave were finalists in both of the domestic cup competitions, qualifying for the UEFA Europa League for the first time in their history.

Nuno moved to Valencia, where he secured a fourth-place finish in 2014/15, while winning the Manager of the Month award in Spain three times.

He then spent a season at Porto before moving to England and Wolves.

His first season at Molineux was a triumph as Nuno led the club to promotion and the Championship title, finishing nine points clear.

Nuno guided Wolves to a seventh-placed finish in the 2018/19 season for the club's highest Premier League finish and their highest in the English top flight since the 1979/80 season.

They repeated the feat the following campaign, having been in contention for a top-four spot during the run-in.

Despite a solid start to 2020/21 Wolves were unable to sustain that consistency. Nuno left the club by mutual consent in May 2021 after steering Wolves to a 13th-place finish.

At the end of June 2021, Nuno returned to the Premier League when announced as the new Spurs head coach, but his stay in north London was brief and he departed there in November 2021.

Nuno more recently spent 16 months at Saudi Arabian side Al-Ittihad, but departed in November 2023 six months after leading them to the title.

He helped to keep Forest in the Premier League for a third successive season, as they finished 17th, winning 2-1 at Burnley on the final day of 2023/24.

Player to Watch: Chris Wood

New Zealand-born forward Chris Wood first moved to England in 2009 to sign for West Bromwich Albion and represented his country in the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa a year later. 

A number of loan spells followed before moved on to Leicester City and Leeds United before joining Burnley in 2017. 

After a successful period at Burnley which led them to the Europa League, Wood then moved to Newcastle before signing for Forest on an initial loan deal in January 2023.

Having settled on Trentside, Wood’s form went to another level following the arrival of Nuno Espírito Santo in December 2023, with 25 of his 29 league goals for Forest coming under the Portuguese Head Coach. It represents the most Premier League goals for a Forest player under one manager, and this season Wood also became the Club's record goalscorer in the Premier League.

Probable line-ups: 

Exeter (4-2-3-1): Joe Whitworth; Jack McMillan, Cheick Diabate, Alex Hartridge, Vincent Harper; Ryan Woods, Ed Francis; Ilmari Niskanen, Caleb Watts, Tony Yogane; Josh Magennis

Nottingham Forest (3-5-2): Wayne Hennessey; Harry Toffolo, Willy Boly, Murillo; Ola Aina, Ryan Yates, Ibrahim Sangere, Elliot Anderson, Neco Williams; Chris Wood,  Taiwo Awoniyi

Last meeting:  21st April 1951 Exeter City 0 Nottingham Forest 5, Division Three South

ARGYLE WRITE NEW CHAPTER IN THEIR HISTORY WITH LIVERPOOL WIN

 They might not have emulated their class of 1983-84 who reached the semi finals of the competition, at least not yet anyway, but Plymouth Argyle have written a new chapter in their history with their victory over Liverpool in the FA Cup fourth round. 

After upsetting the form book in the third round to beat Brentford at the GTEC Community Stadium, the Bees had one of the best home records in the Premier League while Argyle were yet to win on their travels, it would have taken something special to surpass that achievement, and it was. 

Yes, it was a much changed Liverpool side, a side shorn of their A listers such as Mohamed Salah, Virgil Van Dijk, Trent Alexander-Arnold etc, but the Reds still went into the tie as the overwhelming favourites. Arne Slot could still call upon Diogo Jota, Luis Diazand Federico Chiesa along with Harvey Elliott and Joe Gomez. He also had Darwin Nunez and Curtis Jones in reserve.

Ryan Hardie's 54th minute penalty ultimately proved to be the difference, but a stunning rearguard display spearheaded by their back three of Maksym Talovierov, Nikola Katic and Julio Pleguezuelo, not to mention a number of top draw saves from Conor Hazard. 

With two wins over Premier League clubs so far in the competition, a lot of teams would probably want to avoid the Pilgrims in the next round. Nevertheless, the attentions of new manager Miran Muslic will be switching to the Championship, as they continue their battle against relegation.

TALKING POINTS FROM TORQUAY UNITED VERSUS EASTBOURNE BOROUGH

 1. Sam Dreyer's off the mark. 

It might have taken a deflection off an Eastbourne defender, but Torquay United centre back Sam Dreyer is now off the mark. Dreyer had seen a goal disallowed against Chelmsford City last November, but he capped an impressive display by opening his account for the Gulls to help end their four-match winless run. 

If he can chip with a few more between now and the end of the campaign, it will provide United with a major boost.  

Also, skipper Oscar Threlkeld remains the only one of the Gulls' starters not to have found the back of the net this season.

2. James Hamon's save. 

James Hamon's 68th minute save to deny Eastbourne's Jason Adigun helped to give the Gulls a platform from which they could go on to win the game. Adigun connected with a cross from the left, but Hamon's reflexes were equal to it - as he made a point blank save. 

Goals can change games and certainly the complexion of the game could have been different if Adigun had found the target.  

In addition to this, Hamon also had the honour of keeping the Gulls' 1,000th clean sheet in regular fixtures since 1927.

3. United's depleted defence stood strong.  

United's achievement in keeping a clean sheet against Eastbourne was made to appear more remarkable by the fact that it was achieved in the absence of Jordan Dyer and Jay Foulston. With the duo unavailable through injury, Gulls manager Paul Wotton went with Ed Palmer and Finley Craske in a back three with Sam Dreyer and the trio laid the foundations of a strong defensive display as United kept an all-important clean sheet.

4. Matt Jay is settling in well. 

United striker Matt Jay produced arguably his best performance since he arrived at Plainmoor following his release by Colchester United. 

A minute before half-time, he teed up Lirak Hasani for a shot that Eastbourne keeper Joe Wright parried behind for a corner, with a pass that manager Paul Wotton said in his post-match interview that no other player on the pitch probably would have made. 

As a recent promotion winner with a team in a higher division, Jay's experience will prove to be important as the season enters its final stages. 

5. It's still tight at the top of National League South. 

After today's matches, the top of the National League South remains as tight as ever, with six points separating the top seven. The Gulls are currently fifth with 55 points and are four points behind leaders Dorking Wanderers, who are on 59 points, with two games in hand and are level on points with fourth placed Maidstone United with a game in hand.

6. The Gulls' impressive record against the top eight remains intact. 

By beating Eastbourne Borough, Torquay United have extended their record against the top eight in National League South to 18 points from a possible 27. It's a run that includes five wins (Dorking Wanderers H, Worthing H, Eastbourne H, Truro City H and Weston Super Mare H), three draws (Boreham Wood A, Maidstone H and Eastbourne A) and one defeat (Maidstone A). 

United still have to travel to Dorking, Worthing, Truro and Weston Super Mare and host Boreham Wood and if they can maintain their form they've shown against them in their remaining fixtures they will give themselves a huge chance of success. 

 

MATCH PREVIEW # PLYMOUTH ARGYLE VERSUS LIVERPOOL

Match details: Plymouth Argyle versus Liverpool, FA Cup fourth round

Venue: Home Park, Plymouth

Date: Sunday 9th February 2025

Kick off: 3pm 

Current form (last six all competitions): 

Argyle: 

W 1-0 Brentford (FA Cup) A

D 1-1 Oxford United H 

L 0-1 QPR H

L 0-5 Burnley H

D 2-2 Sunderland A

W 2-1 West Bromwich Albion H

Liverpool: 

W 2-0 Brentford A

W 2-1 Lille (UEFA Champions League) H

W 4-1 Ipswich Town H

L 2-3 PSV Eindhoven (UEFA Champions League) A

W 2-0 AFC Bournemouth A

W 4-0 Tottenham Hotspur (EFL Cup semi final) H

Top scorer: 

Argyle: Ibrahim Cissoko (now Sheffield Wednesday) (3)

Liverpool: Mohamed Salah (27)

Head to Head: 

Argyle: 2

Draw: 4

Liverpool: 6

Liverpool factfile: 

Year founded: 1892

Nickname: the Reds

Last season's league finish: 3rd in the Premier League

Liverpool notable honours: 

First Division/ Premier League: Winners x 19

FA Cup: Winners  x 8

Football League/EFL Cup: x 10

European Cup/UEFA Champions League: Winners x 6

UEFA Cup: Winners 1973, 1976, 2001

FIFA Club World Cup: 2019

Manager: Arne Slot

Arne Slot took up the position of Liverpool FC head coach on June 1, 2024, having agreed a deal with the club after the end of 2023-24.

The Dutchman joined the Reds from Eredivisie side Feyenoord ahead of the new season, replacing Jürgen Klopp at the helm following his decision to step down following nine years in charge.

Slot arrived at Anfield after three highly successful campaigns with Feyenoord, during which he led them to the league title in 2023 and was named Eredivisie Manager of the Year on two occasions.

He also helped the Rotterdam club to victory in the KNVB Cup in April 2024 after they defeated NEC Nijmegen 1-0 in the final.

Prior to moving to Feyenoord, Slot held the position of AZ Alkmaar head coach, and he had led them to second place in the table, trailing leaders Ajax only on goal difference, when the Dutch season was cancelled due to COVID-19 in 2019-20.

During his playing career, he operated primarily as a midfielder, turning out for FC Zwolle, NAC Breda, Sparta Rotterdam and PEC Zwolle before hanging up his boots in 2013.

Player to Watch: Trent Alexander-Arnold

Trent Alexander-Arnold emerged from Liverpool FC's Academy to lift a stunning set of major honours before his 24th birthday and is now vice-captain. 

Alexander-Arnold was an integral part of a Reds side that lifted four major trophies within 14 months and surpassed the 100-appearance mark for his boyhood club during a glorious 2019-20 season that featured success in the Premier League, FIFA Club World Cup and UEFA Super Cup.

The England international made history by becoming the youngest player ever to start consecutive Champions League finals as Liverpool beat Tottenham Hotspur in the 2019 final in Madrid and is no stranger to domestic individual records, either.

Old boys: 

Plymouth: None

Liverpool: None

Probable line-ups: 

Plymouth (3-4-2-1): Conor Hazard; Maksym Talovierov, Nikola Katic, Julio Pleguezuelo; Matthew Sorinola, Adam Randell, Jordan Houghton, Tymoteusz Puchasz; Michael Baidoo, Callum Wright; Mustapha Bundu

Liverpool (4-3-3): Vitzeslav Jaros; Trent Alexander-Arnold, Jarell Quansah, Wataru Endo, Tsimikas; Diogo Jota, Tyler Morton, Alexis MacAllister; Harvey Elliott, Federico Chiesa, Rio Ngumoha

Last meeting: Tuesday 19th January, 2017, Plymouth Argyle 0    Liverpool 1, FA Cup third round replay

Lucas Leiva scored his first goal in seven years to send Liverpool into the fourth round of the FA Cup at the expense of League Two Plymouth.

Jurgen Klopp's side had to make the 293-mile trip to Home Park after they were held to a frustrating goalless draw in the initial meeting between the two at Anfield.

However, Lucas ensured the long journey was not a wasted one when he headed home Philippe Coutinho's corner early in the first half.

The win should have been more comfortable for the Reds but Divock Origi's poor penalty was comfortably saved by home keeper Luke McCormick.

Plymouth, who are 66 places below Liverpool in the football pyramid, were not overawed by their Premier League opponents and came closest to equalising when Jake Jervis hit the post with a scissor kick midway through the second half.