"He's the man to carry the Red Devils" - Joleon Lescott makes bold prediction for Manchester United vs Nottingham Forest 

Former Manchester City defender Joleon Lescott has predicted a 3-1 win for Manchester United over Nottingham Forest in the Premier League on Tuesday (December 27).

The Red Devils returned to action earlier this week (December 21) in the Carabao Cup with a win over Burnley. They won 2-0 courtesy of goals from Christian Eriksen and Marcus Rashford.

Next week, Erik ten Hag's side will play their first top-flight match since November as promoted side Nottingham Forest visit Old Trafford.

Lescott noted that both teams won their cup games on their return from the mid-season break, but with Rashford in excellent form, United can win comfortably.

In his predictions for LiveScore, the 40-year-old wrote:

"Both Manchester United and Nottingham Forest were victorious on their return to action in midweek. As I've said before, Rashford’s excellent goal on his return will do him the world of good. I think he now feels he's the man to carry the Red Devils. It should be a comfortable home win at Old Trafford."

This will also be Manchester United's first Premier League game since Cristiano Ronaldo's departure last month. However, manager Ten Hag has quite a few options up front to fill the void.

With 26 points in 14 games, the Red Devils are in the fifth position in the league table. They recovered from a disastrous start to the season, which saw them lose to Brighton & Hove Albion and Brentford in their opening two games.

However, following a period of four consecutive wins, Ten Hag's side have failed to register two victories in a row. Their erratic form has left them 11 points off runaway leaders Arsenal and three behind fourth-placed Tottenham Hotspur. They do have a game in hand over Spurs though.

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Manchester United meet Nottingham Forest after 23 years

There have been 105 clashes between Manchester United and Nottingham Forest in history, but their upcoming encounter will be the very first of the 21st century.

That's because following their relegation at the end of the 1998-99 season, the Tricky Trees failed to secure promotion to the top flight until last season.

The last time these sides met, in February 1999, United ran out 8-1 victors in Nottingham. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer netted four times, while Dwight Yorke and Andrew Cole netted twice each.

The last time Nottingham visited Old Trafford, the Red Devils beat them 3-0 in December 1998. Ronny Johnsen scored a brace, which was coupled with a goal from Ryan Giggs.