Verdict: Nottingham Forest win
Best Odds: 2/1
Bookmaker: Bet365
In an all-Championship FA Cup fourth-round battle, Nigel Adkins’ struggling Hull City side will play host to a revitalized Nottingham Forest who are coming off the back of a dramatic 4-2 victory over defending champions Arsenal earlier this month.
Hull City
After dropping out of the Premier League last season, Hull City now find themselves in a battle to avoid back to back relegations. Coming off the back of a 1-0 defeat to fellow relegation strugglers Sunderland, the Tigers now find themselves sat in 21st position and only their goal difference is keeping them out of the drop zone. Appointing former Southampton manager Nigel Adkins as their new boss before Christmas, Hull have now had five different managers in the past 17 months. Despite picking up a 1-0 win against Blackburn in the third-round, the Tigers have only won a single matchup out of their last 15 Championship appearances.
Team News
Hull City boss Nigel Adkins says David Marshall will start in goal after his clean sheet in the 1-0 win at Blackburn in the FA Cup third round.
Striker Will Keane could start as he continues his recovery from a long-term knee injury.
Nottingham Forest
As for Nottingham Forest, the appointment of former Middlesborough boss Aitor Karanka has given the reds a real platform from which to build on. Producing the best performance of the FA Cup third round, Forest put on a season-best performance after knocking out defending champions Arsenal in a dramatic 4-2 win. Dragging their FA Cup success into their Championship form, Karanka’s side secured a 2-0 win over runaway league leaders Wolves last weekend. With their recent resurge giving Forest a 10 point buffer over the drop zone, the Reds currently sit 14th in the table and will be looking to secure a successful FA Cup run.
Team News
Nottingham Forest will once again be without striker Daryl Murphy because of a rib injury.
Midfielder Liam Bridcutt begins a two-match suspension having been booked 10 times so far this season.
Key Factors to Consider
- These two sides will be meeting in the FA Cup for the first time in over 50 years, with their last encounter coming in February 1966 at this very stage – Hull City won 2-0.
- Hull City are in the FA Cup fourth round for the sixth time in the past seven seasons, only failing to reach this stage in 2014-15 when they lost to Arsenal in the third round.
- Nottingham Forest hoping to reach the FA Cup fifth round for the just the third time since this century, making it past this stage in 2005 and 2014.
- Hull have won four of their last five FA Cup home games at the KCOM Stadium (L1), with all four wins coming against Championship or Premier League opponents.
- The Tigers have won just 1 of their last 8 games at the KCOM.
Conclusion
Despite picking up an impressive 1-0 win against League One promotion hopefuls Blackburn Rovers in the last round, we do expect Hull to struggle against an improved Nottingham Forest side. With the Tigers winning just one of their last eight matches at KCOM Stadium, backing Forest to progress to the fifth-round of the FA Cup on Saturday afternoon seems like the most logical bet.
Verdict: Nottingham Forest win
Best Odds: 2/1
Bookmaker: Bet365
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