Forest team news: Dunk available, Lamptey and Veltman ruled out

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Charlie Hanson

2025-03-28T09:30+00:00

Lewis Dunk is available to face Nottingham Forest on Saturday. 📷 by Paul Hazlewood.

Albion will battle for a place in the FA Cup semi-finals when they take on Nottingham Forest at the Amex this Saturday, kick-off 5.15pm.

Fabian Hurzeler's team have beaten Norwich City, Chelsea and Newcastle United to reach this stage, while Forest defeated Luton Town, Exeter City and Ipswich Town.

Team news

Joel Veltman will not be available to face Forest. 📷 by Paul Hazlewood.

Team news: Albion head coach Hurzeler confirmed that Lewis Dunk, Matt O'Riley and Solly March will be available. He did however rule out defender Tariq Lamptey for at least the next few weeks, but Joel Veltman is nearing a return.

"Lewis Dunk and Matt O’Riley will be back and hopefully they will both be options for the game. Let's wait and see after the session today [Friday]. Tariq will be out for a longer time. Solly March should be an option.

"Tariq has an ankle injury. I think there's a chance that we will see him back [before the end of the season]. He is a good healer, I have a big trust in my medical staff and in Tariq's mindset to be back on the pitch as quickly as possible. There's a chance that he will be back in several weeks."

"Joel Veltman is doing rehab, but he won't be an option. I think he will be back in some days.

Fabian's thoughts

On Nuno Espirito Santo's work with Forest: "He’s made a winning machine. They have players who have quality and a style that fits completely to the profiles of the players. That's something special. That shows his quality.

"It's very difficult to beat them. They can defend very compactly. They are very good in transition. They're very good at set-pieces. They're very good in breaking the rhythm of the opponent.

"He has built a team with players who know how to win Premier League games, who know how to win an FA cup game. So it's massive what he did, and he deserves a lot of compliments."

Match facts

This is the first ever FA Cup meeting between Brighton and Nottingham Forest. The Tricky Trees have progressed from both previous cup ties against the Seagulls – 3-1 in the 1977-78 League Cup quarter-final, and 3-0 on aggregate in the 1986-87 League Cup second round.

Nottingham Forest have won 7-0 and drawn 2-2 with Brighton so far this season. They last scored 10+ goals against an opponent in a single season in 1997-98 (10 vs Doncaster), while Brighton last conceded 10 against a side in 1980-81 (10 vs Manchester United).

Brighton have progressed from their last two FA Cup quarter-final ties, beating Millwall on penalties in 2018-19 and beating Grimsby Town 5-0 in 2022-23.

Nottingham Forest have lost their last three FA Cup quarter-final ties, all by a 1-0 scoreline. They last reached the semi-final of the competition in 1990-91, ultimately reaching the final and losing to Tottenham Hotspur.

Since the start of the 2022-23 campaign, only Manchester City (48) and Manchester United (33) have scored more FA Cup goals (first round onwards) than Brighton (30 in 11 games).

Three of Nottingham Forest’s last five FA Cup ties have gone to a penalty shootout, with Forest progressing from all three. Overall they’ve won all four of their FA Cup shootouts, with only Macclesfield Town and Stevenage (both 5/5) having a better 100% record in the competition proper.

Brighton’s João Pedro has been involved in seven goals in his last four starts in the FA Cup, scoring six and assisting another.

Nottingham Forest’s Chris Wood has scored more goals against Brighton than against any other opponent in his English club career in all competitions (12), netting four times in two games against them this term alone.

Match officials

Referee: Peter Bankes Assistant referees: James Mainwaring & Nick Greenhalgh Fourth official: Thomas Bramall VAR: Andrew Madley AVAR: Craig Taylor SVAR: Paul Tierney