Porto vs Nottingham Forest – News and Probable Lineups

On Thursday, Porto will host Nottingham Forest at the Estadio Do Dragao for the first leg of their Europa League quarter-final.

The home team secured their spot in this round after defeating Stuttgart, while Nottingham Forest triumphed over Midtjylland in their round of 16 clash.

Match overview

Porto is having a remarkable 2025-26 season, as the Dragons are competing for three different trophies.

Françasco Farioli’s squad currently leads Liga Portugal with a five-point advantage over the second-placed team, although Sporting has a match in hand. Additionally, they have progressed to the quarter-finals of the Europa League and the semi-finals of the Taca de Portugal.

The last time Porto faced defeat was in the initial leg of their Taca de Portugal semi-final against Sporting, where they suffered a 1-0 loss. However, they have rebounded with four victories and two draws in their following six fixtures.

Porto will aim to keep that positive momentum going when they meet Nottingham Forest in the Europa League, and they will be especially confident playing on home turf.

This season, the Dragons have only lost once at home, which occurred in December 2025 against Vitoria with a score of 3-1. Furthermore, they have achieved victory in all five of their Europa League matches held at the Estadio Do Dragao.

Throughout their entire Europa League campaign, Porto has lost only once, amassing seven wins and two draws, with that alone defeat coming at the hands of their upcoming quarter-final rivals.

In their previous encounter during the league phase back in October, Nottingham Forest achieved a 2-0 victory against Porto, marking only their second win of the season across all competitions.

Many of Forest’s most significant moments have come in the Europa League this season, while they’ve faced considerable difficulties in the Premier League.

While Forest successfully reached the quarter-finals of the Europa League, thanks to close wins against Fenerbahce (4-2) and Midtjylland (3-0 on penalties after a 2-2 draw) in the knockout rounds, they are currently fighting to avoid relegation from the English top tier.

This term alone, Nottingham Forest has seen managerial changes with Nuno Espirito Santo, Ange Postecoglou, Sean Dyche, and currently Vitor Pereira at the helm, and they sit 16th in the table, just three points clear of the relegation zone.

Nevertheless, a crucial 3-0 triumph over relegation rivals Tottenham Hotspur just before the international break would have given Nottingham Forest a significant boost in confidence, and Pereira will be keen for his team to build on that success with another win on Thursday.

Nottingham Forest has been relatively strong on away outings recently, losing only once in their last five away matches, and they have also lost just once in the Europa League away from home this season.

Team News

For this match, Porto will likely be missing Samu Aghehowa and Luuk de Jong due to injury concerns, while Rodrigo Mora and Nahuen Perez are both uncertain about their participation.

In the absence of these two forwards, Terem Moffi is expected to lead the attack, with William Gomes and Borja Sainz playing from the flanks.

On the other hand, Nottingham Forest is dealing with a number of player availability issues, including Omari Hutchinson, Jair Cunha, Willy Bolly, Nicolo Savona, John Victor, Chris Wood, and Ola Aina.

Add to this, the absence of star midfielder Elliot Anderson due to suspension means that Nicolas Dominguez and Ibrahim Sangare are likely to start in midfield.

Porto probable starting XI:

D Costa; A Costa, Bednarek, Kiwior, Sanusi; Froholdt, Varela, Fofana; Gomes, Moffi, Sainz

Nottingham Forest probable starting XI:

Sales; Williams, Milenkovic, Murillo, Netz; Sangare, Dominguez; Ndoye, Gibbs-White, Hudson-Odoi; Jesus

Though Nottingham Forest won their earlier fixture against Porto this season, Thursday’s hosts have enjoyed a notably stronger campaign overall and find themselves in a far better situation heading into this encounter.

With the advantage of playing at home, Porto will be the expected favorites to emerge victorious.