SUNDERLAND will look to keep themselves in European contention when they host relegation-battling Nottingham Forest.
The Black Cats are reeling from a chaotic 4-3 defeat to Aston Villa last time out, but that won’t stop them looking up the Prem table at the three-point gap between them and the European spots.
Nottingham Forest take their much-improved form to the Stadium of Light on Friday Credit: Getty
Forest arrive having finally found form to push themselves away from the relegeation zone, but with West Ham still just three points behind, a win would give them some much-needed breathing room.
The match-up has big implications for a number of Prem sides, and will be one that fans up and down the table will be keeping an eye on.
Match Details
Kick-off: 20:00 BST
Date: Friday April 24th, 2026
Venue: Stadium of Light
TV Details: Sky Sports Main Event, Sky Sports Premier League
Referee: Darren England
Head-to-Head
- 27/09/2025: Nottingham Forest 0-1 Sunderland (Premier League)
- 30/12/2017: Nottingham Forest 0-1 Sunderland (Championship)
- 12/09/2017: Sunderland 0-1 Nottingham Forest (Championship)
- 28/08/2012: Nottingham Forest 1-4 Sunderland (League Cup)
- 03/03/2007: Sunderland 2-0 Nottingham Forest (Championship)
Recent Form
Sunderland
League Position: 11th
Recent Results: L-W-W-L-L
Sitting in mid-table, the Black Cats have hit choppy waters of late, with their derby shock over Newcastle overshadowed by losses to Brighton and a heart-breaking 4-3 loss to Aston Villa in their thriller last weekend.
Nottingham Forest
League Position: 16th
Recent Results: W-D-D-W-W
Forest are hitting their peak at the right time, enjoying a five-game unbeaten streak in all competitions including a dominant 4-1 victory over Burnley in their last league outing.
Team News
Sunderland
The hosts are grappling with several absences, Bertrand Traoré, Jocelin Ta Bi, and Nilson Angulo all close in on returns to training. Romaine Mundle remains unavailable after undergoing surgery for his hamstring injury in March. Omar Alderete is back in contention to start after missing last week through illness.
Nottingham Forest
Forest will be without the services of Callum Hudson-Odoi following his season-ending quad injury last week, as well as Murillo, who is still a way off after injuring his hamstring. Vitor Pereira will also have to do without depth options John Victor, and Nicolo Savona Murillo.
Big Match Stats
- Nottingham Forest have struggled against Sunderland in recent years, losing five of their last six league meetings against the Black Cats.
- Sunderland are the only current Premier League side yet to win a match on all seven days of the week, having never won a fixture played on a Friday (D2 L1).
- Forest manager Vítor Pereira boasts a dominant record in the spring months, winning eight of his 13 Premier League matches played across March and April (D4 L1).
- Only Crystal Palace (71) have seen fewer total goals in their matches this season than Sunderland (76), despite the hosts conceding four in their last outing.
- Nottingham Forest are looking for consecutive league wins for the first time since November, currently enjoying their best unbeaten run of the season (5 games).
Sunderland: 17/10
Draw: 11/5
Nottingham Forest: 17/10
Eze Chidiebere Paul
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