OLD TRAFFORD, MANCHESTER — In their first meeting since 1999, Manchester United and Nottingham Forest resume their Premier League schedules following the FIFA World Cup break.
The hosts are unbeaten in four months at home, so it would be a considerable surprise if Forest — who have the worst away record in the top flight this season, with two points from seven games — were to avoid defeat, as the second-bottom side bid to escape the relegation zone.
This evening could mark United youth product Jesse Lingard’s first game against his former club in the Premier League, having scored 20 times in 149 league appearances for them between 2014 and 2022.
The Sporting News is following the match live and providing score updates and commentary below.
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Man United vs. Nottingham Forest live score
| 1H | 2H | Final | |
| Man United | 1 | — | — |
| Nottingham Forest | 0 | — | — |
Goals: —
Man United vs. Nottingham Forest live updates, highlights from Premier League
19th min: GOAL! It’s a well-worked corner routine from Christian Eriksen to Rashford, and United are 1-0 up! The Denmark international plays it along the ground to around the penalty spot, where the the Red Devils’ No.10 peels away from his man and cuts the ball back across goal.
13th min: The visitors have not given up any more openings, and are slowly starting to work out how to make their own with a couple of through balls nearly creeping through the makeshift United defence. Lingard is the key creative force, but the touch of quality usually provided by Morgan Gibbs-White already looks like it could be an issue here in making these moments count.
6th min: Forest, hit with injuries of their own, have started brightly. No clear-cut chances, but Taiwo Awoniyi is making the running and putting himself on Varane to test out just how exhausted the France international is. At the other end, though, Malacia has the first significant shot, hitting the post from the left after Rashford’s initial effort was blocked.
KICK-OFF: We’re underway here in the rainy North West.
5 mins to KO: Anthony Martial, fresh after five weeks off, has a huge chance to make the starting spot as United’s No.9 his own and drive this club back to the Champions League in the post-Cristiano Ronaldo era. The Red Devils now sit just four points behind Spurs with two games in hand, and with very winnable games against Wolverhampton Wanderers and Bournemouth next up.
20 mins to KO: While Varane has perhaps been rushed back into the XI slightly ahead of schedule, after playing in a World Cup final just eight days ago, Lisandro Martinez is still absent from the United squad. The fellow centre-back was of course on the winning team in Qatar, though didn’t feature in the final itself. He became the fifth United player in history to lift the game’s greatest trophy, with manager Ten Hag understandably “proud” of Martinez.
40 mins to KO: Alongside Lingard, Dean Henderson in the Forest net is another United product with a point to prove. The goalkeeper is in fine form, having made a string of super saves to secure a win over Liverpool before the World Cup break. He also denied Declan Rice and Wilfried Zaha from the penalty spot to clinch victories against West Ham and Crystal Palace.
1 hour to KO: United’s team news is out and it is a makeshift defence as Aaron Wan-Bissaka, Raphael Varane, Luke Shaw and Tyrell Malacia start. The Athletic have reported that an illness in the camp has forced Ten Hag into selecting that back four.
🥁 Here’s your United line-up! 👊#MUFC || #MUNNFO
— Manchester United (@ManUtd) December 27, 2022
1 hour 20 mins to KO: United academy product Jesse Lingard makes his homecoming this evening, and is a man on a mission following a distasteful last season under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and Ralf Rangnick. The England international spent the backend of 2020/21 in fine form on loan at West Ham, but the Red Devils blocked a permanent transfer away, instead electing to keep him for the final year of his deal.
Lingard told the Telegraph: “It was false promises. I don’t know why I wasn’t playing. I don’t know what the problem was, whether it was politics or whatever. I still haven’t got an answer to this day. I didn’t even ask. I’d rather that someone out of respect for me being there that long told me: ‘this is why you’re not playing’. I never got that.”
1 hour 40 mins to KO: Since Forest were last relegated from the Premier League, these two sides haven’t been drawn together in either of the cups, making this a first meeting in a generation. United are on a six-game winning streak against the East Midlands club — the most recent being an infamous 8-1 victory at the City Ground. Forest’s last triumph here came 28 years and 10 days ago, via a Stuart Pearce winner.
2 hours to KO: Hello and welcome to The Sporting News’ coverage of Manchester United and Nottingham Forest, live from Old Trafford.
United’s 2-0 win against Burnley in the Carabao Cup on Wednesday continued a strong run of home form for the team who were fifth in the Premier League when the action halted to accommodate the World Cup in Qatar.
Forest’s total of two points on their travels so far this season is the worst away record of any team in the top flight – but the relegation battlers have lost only one of their last five games in all competitions, beating Liverpool, Tottenham Hotspur and, most recently in the Premier League, Crystal Palace.
What time is Man United vs. Nottingham Forest?
United play host to Forest at Old Trafford. It kicks off at 8 p.m. BST on Tuesday, December 27.
| Kickoff time | |
| USA | 15:00 ET |
| Canada | 15:00 ET |
| UK | 20:00 GMT |
| Australia | 07:00 AEDT* |
| India | 01:30 IST |
| Hong Kong | 04:00 HKT* |
| Malaysia | 04:00 MYT* |
| Singapore | 04:00 SGT* |
| New Zealand | 09:00 NZDT* |
*Game starts on December 28 in these time zones
How to watch Man United vs. Nottingham Forest
| TV channel | Streaming | |
|---|---|---|
| USA | USA Network, Universo | fuboTV, Peacock, Universo Now, Telemundo Deportes En Vivo |
| Canada | — | fuboTV |
| UK | — | Amazon Prime Video |
| Australia | — | Optus Sport |
| New Zealand | Sky Sport Premier League | SKY Go |
| India | Star Sports Select 1 | Star Sports |
| Hong Kong | 621 Now Premier League 1, 620 Now Premier League TV | Now TV |
| Malaysia | — | Astro Go |
| Singapore | — | StarHub TV+ |
UK: The full matchweek of post-Christmas fixtures are streaming via Amazon Prime.
USA: Select matches are televised on USA Network (English) and Telemundo or Universo (Spanish), and all three channels can be streamed on fuboTV. The rest of the matches are streamed on NBC platform Peacock for subscribers.
Canada: Every Premier League game streams live and on demand exclusively via fuboTV.
Australia: Fans in Australia can stream matches live and on demand on Optus Sport.