Reigning English champions Arsenal travel to the East Midlands on Sunday, October 18, 2026, to face Nottingham Forest at the City Ground for Matchweek 7 of the Premier League. Kickoff is scheduled for 4:30 p.m. local time in England (12:30 p.m. Brasília time). Supporters in Brazil can watch the live broadcast on ESPN via pay television and stream the fixture on Disney+, while Sky Sports holds the television rights in the United Kingdom.
Mikel Arteta guides his London squad into the weekend sitting second in the Premier League table with 15 points from six matches, having recorded five victories and a single 3-0 defeat against Brighton. Having ended a 22-year wait for the domestic league trophy at the conclusion of the 2025/2026 campaign, Arsenal trails first-place Manchester City (18 points) by three points. The visitors arrive in strong form after winning nine of their 10 fixtures across all competitions this season, including a 2-1 comeback win over Leeds United at the Emirates Stadium on Saturday (10), featuring goals from Riccardo Calafiori and substitute Bruno Guimarães. They followed that domestic result with a 3-0 triumph over Lille on Tuesday (13) in the UEFA Champions League, where Jurrien Timber, Eberechi Eze, and substitute Bukayo Saka found the net in the final half-hour.
Nottingham Forest enters Matchweek 7 in 15th place on the league table with five points from six outings, compiled from one victory against Aston Villa, two draws, and three losses, alongside a tally of five goals scored and eight conceded. The home side aims to snap a two-match losing streak in the English top flight after falling 1-0 at home to Coventry City and suffering a 3-1 away defeat against Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park on Sunday (11). In that match in South London, Dan Ndoye gave Nottingham Forest the lead just three minutes after kickoff before Daichi Kamada, Jefferson Lerma, and Yéremy Pino scored to complete the turnaround for the hosts. When the two clubs last met at the City Ground on January 17, 2026, the contest finished in a 0-0 draw.
Broadcast channels and live streaming options for the Matchweek 7 clash
Viewers following the English top flight from Brazil have two official platforms to watch the match live on Sunday afternoon. Both traditional cable television and digital streaming services will carry the signal directly from Nottingham.
- ESPN: live television coverage on pay TV in Brazil.
- Disney+: live digital streaming platform for subscribers in Brazil.
- Sky Sports: official domestic television broadcaster in the United Kingdom.
Kickoff schedule and stadium allocation at the City Ground
For the trip to the East Midlands, visiting Arsenal supporters received a full ticket allocation of 3,006 seats positioned inside the John Robertson Stand at the City Ground. Key scheduling and venue details for the fixture include:
- Date: Sunday, October 18, 2026.
- Local kickoff time: 4:30 p.m. BST at the stadium (12:30 p.m. Brasília time).
- Venue: City Ground, in Nottingham, England.
- Competition and round: Premier League — Matchweek 7.
Oliver Glasner’s tactical setup and Nottingham Forest injury updates
Appointed in July 2026 following his departure from Crystal Palace, Austrian head coach Oliver Glasner is the fifth permanent manager to lead Nottingham Forest in less than 12 months, following the tenures of Nuno Espírito Santo, Ange Postecoglou, Sean Dyche, and Vítor Pereira. Glasner is expected to organize the home team in a 3-4-2-1 tactical formation to counter the reigning champions.
The projected starting eleven for Nottingham Forest features: Matz Sels; Ola Aina (or Jair Cunha), Ousmane Diomande, and Murillo; Daniel Muñoz, Xaver Schlager, James McAtee, and Neco Williams; Morgan Gibbs-White and Dan Ndoye; Liam Delap.
Ahead of the match on home turf, the coaching staff is managing confirmed injury absences alongside late fitness tests in both defense and attack. In his pre-match press conference, Glasner noted that midfielder Morgan Gibbs-White picked up a minor muscle problem against Crystal Palace and trained individually after missing team sessions during the week, while defender Nikola Milenkovic returned to group training for the first time following several weeks out:
- Igor Jesus (forward): ruled out with a calf injury.
- Nicolò Savona (defender): unavailable as he continues rehabilitation from knee surgery performed in March.
- Nikola Milenkovic (center-back): recovered from a thigh muscle injury, suffered a bone bruise in training, and remains a matchday doubt pending his physical reaction to Friday’s session.
- Morgan Gibbs-White (attacking midfielder): doubtful due to a minor muscle injury sustained at Selhurst Park, depending on his response to final pre-match training.
On the disciplinary front, the host club has no suspended players and no squad members sitting one caution away from a ban on four yellow cards. Defender Ola Aina leads the Nottingham Forest roster in bookings this league campaign with three yellow cards.
Mikel Arteta’s projected Arsenal lineup and medical report
Leading the North London club since December 2019 and working under a contract extended through 2030, Spanish manager Mikel Arteta is set to deploy Arsenal in a 4-2-3-1 system. Bukayo Saka, Martin Ødegaard, and Kai Havertz are slated to return to the starting lineup after coming off the bench during the midweek European victory over Lille.
Arsenal’s probable starting lineup consists of: David Raya; Ben White (or Jurrien Timber), Ezri Konsa (or Cristhian Mosquera), Gabriel Magalhães, and Riccardo Calafiori; Declan Rice and Bruno Guimarães (or Eberechi Eze); Bukayo Saka, Martin Ødegaard, and Noni Madueke; Kai Havertz.
The visiting medical department lists three confirmed absentees and one central midfielder undergoing a final assessment prior to kickoff:
- William Saliba (center-back): ruled out while going through physical reconditioning following a back injury sustained during the 2026 World Cup.
- Piero Hincapié (defender): sidelined with an ankle injury picked up after the victory over Leeds United.
- Christos Tzolis (forward): unavailable due to injury.
- Martín Zubimendi (midfielder): showed progress in recovering from an ankle issue and faces a late fitness check.
Arteta addressed the recovery timelines for his injured players during his media briefing. Regarding Hincapié, the manager initially stated: “Piero is improving, but it looks more significant. I think it will be a matter of weeks, though we do not know exactly how many.” Providing a subsequent update on Friday, he added: “Piero is evolving really well. Knowing his character and the way he pushes everybody, I’m sure it’s not going to take long, I think, but he will probably need another week or two.” Speaking about Tzolis, Arteta noted: “He’s doing really well. Yesterday he had another MRI scan to see how the injury is evolving. It’s progressing really well, so he’s another one who hopefully we can have back in a few weeks.” On Zubimendi’s condition, the coach remarked: “Zubi is much, much better. We have to see with Zubi how he deals with the pain on the pitch and the sensations he will face.” Finally, detailing Saliba’s workload, Arteta explained: “Now it has been over a week, I think, and he is going to manage that load, and how many repetitions and consecutive sessions he can complete, but he is building his capacity now to good standards, and we will see if in the coming weeks we can start introducing him with the team, and see where we are to actually make him available.”
Mirroring their opponents, Arsenal has no players serving suspensions or carrying four yellow cards into Matchweek 7. Brazilian center-back Gabriel Magalhães is the most cautioned player in the visiting squad with two yellow cards.
Referees and VAR officials appointed by the PGMOL
The Premier League and Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL), the body that oversees refereeing in English professional soccer, confirmed the officiating crew assigned to the City Ground:
- Referee: Michael Oliver (England / PGMOL).
- Assistant referees: Stuart Burt and James Mainwaring (England / PGMOL).
- Fourth official: Farai Hallam (England / PGMOL).
- Video Assistant Referee (VAR): Michael Salisbury (England / PGMOL).
- Assistant VAR (AVAR): Ian Hussin (England / PGMOL).
Recent head-to-head history between the clubs
Across the last 12 official competitive meetings between the two sides since 2016, Arsenal holds the advantage with seven victories, compared to three wins for Nottingham Forest and two draws. In the overall historical record spanning 109 matches, Arsenal has recorded 56 wins, Nottingham Forest has secured 29 victories, and 24 games have ended level. The North London side carries a six-match unbeaten run against the East Midlands club (including 3-0 home victories on November 23, 2024, and September 13, 2025), though the last two Premier League clashes hosted at the City Ground — played on February 26, 2025, and January 17, 2026 — both finished in 0-0 draws.