🏏 Sat, 22 Aug 2026 15:00 BST
Nottingham Forest
vs
Leeds United
3-4-2-1 vs 3-4-2-1
Substitutes
Substitutes
Match Preview
- The opening weekend serves up a mirror match, both sides in a 3-4-2-1. The central midfield pairings decide the shape of the game: Forest field 191cm Ivory Coast international Ibrahim Sangare, 28, an AFCON 2024 winner who was regarded as one of the best anchors in the Eredivisie at PSV, alongside left-footed James McAtee, 23. Leeds counter with 194cm German Anton Stach and Ethan Ampadu in the same slots.
- Forest's back three mixes size with experience. Nikola Milenkovic, 28, is 195cm, captained Fiorentina and has 264 Serie A appearances behind him; Murillo, 24, is a left-footed Brazilian signed from Corinthians; and 21-year-old Jair da Cunha stands 198cm after coming through Santos and Botafogo. Their aerial contest with 189cm Dominic Calvert-Lewin, Everton's main striker for nine years, is a headline duel.
- Leeds match that with three defenders over 190cm. Tarik Muharemovic, a 23-year-old, 192cm left-footer developed in Juventus's academy who played 32 Serie A games and scored twice in 2025-26 and has 14 caps for Bosnia and Herzegovina; Jaka Bijol, 27, a former midfielder who captained Udinese; and 193cm Wales international Joe Rodon. Their task is Igor Jesus, who helped Botafogo win both the Brasileirao and the Copa Libertadores.
- The two pairs of shadow strikers will define the tempo. Forest use Morgan Gibbs-White, the 171cm England playmaker who came through Wolverhampton and made his senior debut in 2024, next to McAtee, who spent 11 years at Manchester City and captained England to the 2025 European Under-21 title. Leeds answer with Harry Wilson, 29, the left-footed Wales international who posted nine goals and six assists in 2025-26.
- Wilson's partner is Brenden Aaronson, the 25-year-old United States international. He went from Philadelphia Union to Red Bull Salzburg and had a loan at Union Berlin before returning, and his game is built on off-ball running and the quality of his pressing. In a 3-4-2-1 against a 3-4-2-1, whichever pair of shadows can get alongside the opposing pivot first usually wins the territory.
- Forest have a reunion on the bench in Chris Wood. The 34-year-old New Zealand captain stands 191cm and scored more than 50 goals across his spells at Burnley and Leeds United, with Leicester and Newcastle also on his CV. His heading and hold-up play make him the obvious option if Forest want a more direct route late on.
- Japan midfielder Ao Tanaka starts on the Leeds bench. The 27-year-old central midfielder joined from Fortuna Dusseldorf after coming up at Kawasaki Frontale and was voted the club's player of the year in 2024-25. Averaging around 90 touches a game with a pass completion rate above 90 percent, he calms games down through sheer volume of involvement and has been a natural partner for Stach.
- Wales are represented on both sides. Forest's left wing-back Neco Williams, 25, came through Liverpool and owns Champions League and FA Cup winner's medals, and he attacks with pace and crossing. Leeds have Rodon, Ampadu, who captained the side to the Championship title, Harry Wilson, and 28-year-old Daniel James on the bench, one of the quickest players in the division.
- The goalkeeping contrast is generational. Forest's Mats Sels is a 34-year-old Belgium international, once named Ligue 1's best goalkeeper at Strasbourg, with Anderlecht and Newcastle also behind him. Leeds start 23-year-old James Trafford, a 192cm Manchester City product who returned via a buy-back clause after impressing at Burnley. Both benches hold a 197cm Brazilian keeper, John Victor for Forest and Lucas Perri for Leeds.
- Three Chelsea academy graduates are involved. Forest's Ola Aina, 29, the Nigeria international starting on the right, came through at Chelsea and played Serie A with Torino, while the bench holds Callum Hudson-Odoi, 25, a Champions League and Europa League winner with the same club. Leeds's Ampadu is another Chelsea product, with loans at Spezia, Venezia and RB Leipzig on his path.