MATCH PREVIEW: CARDIFF CITY vs NOTTINGHAM FOREST

Match Previews
Tuesday 29th December 2015, 7:45pm K.O.Date:
Cardiff City Stadium Venue:



THE OPPOSITION

Forest travel to South Wales for Tuesday night’s match following a 1-1 draw with Leeds United on Sunday. The result was their sixth consecutive match unbeaten in the Sky Bet Championship as they rose to thirteenth place in the table.



Dougie Freedman’s men have been on a remarkable run following a disappointing patch of form in late September and October. Their draw with Leeds was their seventh consecutive match at the City Ground without a defeat, having won all of their previous four.

Nélson Oliveira, on loan from Benfica, has been their star man, netting six League goals to date, while Cape Verdean winger Ryan Mendes has also impressed of late, scoring in Forest’s recent victory over MK Dons. Welsh internationals David Vaughan and Jonny Williams could line up in midfield at Cardiff City Stadium.


CLUB CONNECTIONS
Robert Earnshaw is remembered fondly by fans of both Forest and City. Earnie scored 43 goals in 111 appearances for the Reds between 2008 and 2011, having previously turned out for their East Midlands rivals, Derby County.



Forest have certainly had their share of Welsh internationals, with former Bluebirds Chris Gunter and Aaron Ramsey also playing at the City Ground. Both graduates of City’s Academy, Gunter went on to make over 150 appearances for Forest, while Ramsey joined the Club on a brief loan spell in 2010/11 as he regained match fitness following injury.

Meanwhile, Chris Burke could be returning to Cardiff City Stadium on Tuesday night. A fan-favourite during his time in South Wales, Burke is now in his second campaign for Forest, having starred for City over three seasons.


MEMORABLE MEETING
The Bluebirds put in a dominant performance at Ninian Park to defeat Nottingham Forest 3-0 in January 2005.

City had a number of chances to open the scoring in the opening period, but had to wait until after the interval for their first goal, as John Thompson fouled Cameron Jerome as he burst into the box.



The referee pointed to the spot, and Peter Thorne made no mistake with the penalty, slotting it into the bottom corner.

Thorne added his second with five minutes remaining, as the ball deflected to him following James Collins’ effort from a corner. The visitors then had Jon Hjelde dismissed for a clash with Jerome, before Graham Kavanagh sealed the win with a superb individual goal in injury time.



Scroll down to watch highlights of City's 3-0 victory!

DON'T MISS A MOMENT

TICKETS:Online:www.eticketing.co.uk/cardiffcityPhone: 0845 345 1400

LISTEN: Supporters can listen in live on Cardiff City Player HD* for all the action from City v Forest.

WATCH: Extended highlights of the match will be available to subscribers of Cardiff City Player HD*

SOCIAL: Live updates from Cardiff City Stadium will come via our official Twitter account, @CardiffCityFC, and our live match blog on www.cardiffcityfc.co.uk.

*Search ‘Cardiff City’ on the App Store and Google Play Store to view Cardiff City Player HD on Smart Phones, with live commentary and plenty more content available on the go.