Nottingham Forest v Tottenham: Spurs searching for first point and first goal of the season

Nottingham Forest host Tottenham Hotspur on Saturday 5 September, with both clubs still chasing a first win of the new Premier League season — and only one of them has managed a goal so far.

Where both sides stand

According to the Premier League table, Forest sit 12th after two matches. A draw and a defeat have yielded a single point, with two goals scored and three conceded — an underwhelming start, but a point on the board all the same.

Tottenham's opening has been more troubling. Spurs prop up the division on zero points after back-to-back defeats, and they are one of only two sides in the top flight yet to score, alongside Coventry City. Five goals conceded — only Crystal Palace have let in more — leaves their goal difference at -5, joint worst in the division.

The early-season snapshot, according to the Premier League table:

• Nottingham Forest — 12th, 1 point (D, L), 2 scored, 3 conceded
• Tottenham Hotspur — 20th, 0 points (L, L), 0 scored, 5 conceded

What the odds say

Bookmakers make this a genuinely tight call, with Forest installed as narrow favourites:

• Forest win — 2.56 (an implied chance of roughly 39%)
• Draw — 3.60 (roughly 28%)
• Spurs win — 2.98 (roughly 34%)

That a winless, pointless away side is priced within half a point of the hosts says plenty about how the market rates Tottenham relative to their results. There is no odds-on favourite here — even the shortest price carries an implied probability below 40%.

The stakes

For Tottenham, Saturday offers the chance to get off the mark in both columns, points and goals, and climb off the foot of the table. For Forest, a first win of the campaign would turn one point from two matches into four from three, and lift them clear of the congestion in the middle of the division.

September is early and nobody is panicking yet, but tables shape narratives quickly, and Spurs will not want to be three matches in and still searching for a first point.

How it might unfold

Forest have at least shown they can score, and with Spurs having shipped five times in two outings, the visitors' defensive record is the most obvious pressure point. Yet Tottenham's problems at the other end are just as pressing: an attack yet to register must find a way past a Forest defence that has itself been breached three times in two games.

Whether Spurs can end that drought may well decide the contest. The market expects a close, competitive match, and with both sides desperate for a first win, a tense afternoon in Nottingham looks likely.

Kick-off is at 3pm UK time on Saturday 5 September.