Nottingham Forest vs Man City: Haaland and Guardiola's side aim to bounce back at City Ground

Manchester City head to Nottingham Forest on Saturday looking to end a two-game losing run in the Premier League. A win at the City Ground is seen as essential if they are to stay in touch with the title race, while Forest, who are in the relegation zone, are searching for only their second league victory of the season.

City's recent slump

City's perfect start to the league campaign ended with defeats to Aston Villa and Brighton & Hove Albion. Those results allowed defending champions Arsenal to move above them into first place, according to Sports Illustrated.

A 3-2 Champions League win over RB Leipzig on Wednesday offered a glimpse of the attacking strength that has carried the side, with Erling Haaland leading the Premier League scoring charts. Defensively, however, City have struggled. They have not kept a clean sheet in any of their last seven matches and have conceded two or more goals on four of those occasions.

Forest's difficult start under Oliver Glasner

Forest have collected six points from their opening nine league matches. They have taken just one point at home and have not scored in any of their four league games at the City Ground this season. Glasner's time in charge has yet to produce the improvement the club hoped for.

Forest's weakness at the back offers them some encouragement, given City's recent defensive record. A draw would also be welcomed by the hosts, who have been in a difficult run.

Team news and predicted lineups

Forest have some fitness boosts. Igor Jesus has returned to team training after a calf injury and may feature in some capacity. Nicolò Savona is back in training after 10 months out, but Glasner has effectively ruled him out for this match. Nicolás Domínguez has suffered a recurrence of a muscle injury and could be out for up to eight weeks.

Sports Illustrated predicts a Forest side in a 3-4-2-1 formation, with former City academy players James McAtee and Liam Delap starting. For City, Pep Guardiola's side is expected to be set up in a 4-2-3-1 shape. Antoine Semenyo is the only absentee, with a knee injury expected to keep him out until December at the earliest. Yahoo Sports reported that Guardiola is considering three changes from the side that beat Leipzig.

Elliot Anderson returns to face his former club, having left Forest over the summer. Haaland has scored five times in eight appearances against Forest, but has not found the net in his last four meetings with them.

What next

City are expected to start as favourites, though the recent results show that even the strongest sides can be caught out. The match is the final Premier League fixture for both teams before the November international break. Coverage is scheduled on Sky Sports, and the outcome will shape the table picture for both clubs as they head into a break. Team news may still shift before kick-off, so supporters should check official club updates closer to the match.

Since this is a preview, the result is not yet known.