The Man City Vs Nottingham Forest Lineups were confirmed ahead of a 7:30pm kick-off on Wednesday, March 4, 2026, as Pep Guardiola’s side welcomed the struggling Midlands club to the Etihad Stadium on matchday 29 of the Premier League season.
City arrived in the fixture riding a seven-game winning run across all competitions and desperately needing maximum points to keep pace with league leaders Arsenal, who were simultaneously in action at Brighton.
Nottingham Forest, sitting 17th in the table and in the relegation zone on goal difference, were on their fourth manager of the season after a turbulent campaign and had lost their two previous league fixtures.
Antoine Semenyo put City ahead in the 31st minute with a composed volley after being picked out by Rayan Cherki, and Guardiola’s side looked to be coasting towards a comfortable victory.
Forest levelled through Morgan Gibbs-White shortly after the break, a crisp backheel finish after Igor Jesus had nodded down Ola Aina’s cross, and the Etihad fell silent.
Rodri responded almost immediately with a powerful header from a corner to restore City’s advantage, but Forest refused to yield and Elliot Anderson struck a fierce effort late in the game to earn a dramatic 2-2 draw.
The result was a significant blow to City’s title ambitions, leaving them seven points behind Arsenal with a game in hand.
Man City Vs Nottingham Forest Lineups In Full
Manchester City Starting XI (4-1-3-2)
| Position | Player |
|---|---|
| GK | Gianluigi Donnarumma |
| RB | Matheus Nunes |
| CB | Rúben Dias |
| CB | Marc Guéhi |
| LB | Rayan Aït-Nouri |
| DM | Rodri |
| CM | Phil Foden |
| CM | Bernardo Silva |
| CM | Rayan Cherki |
| ST | Erling Haaland |
| ST | Antoine Semenyo |
Nottingham Forest Starting XI (3-5-1-1)
| Position | Player |
|---|---|
| GK | Matz Sels |
| CB | Jair Cunha |
| CB | Nikola Milenkovic |
| CB | Murillo |
| RWB | Ola Aina |
| CM | Nicolás Domínguez |
| CM | Ibrahim Sangaré |
| CM | Elliot Anderson |
| LWB | Neco Williams |
| AM | Morgan Gibbs-White |
| ST | Igor Jesus |
Key Substitutions
| Team | Off | On |
|---|---|---|
| Manchester City | Erling Haaland | Omar Marmoush |
| Manchester City | Rayan Cherki | Savinho |
| Nottingham Forest | Ola Aina | Callum Hudson-Odoi |
| Nottingham Forest | Igor Jesus | Taiwo Awoniyi |
Notable Absences
| Team | Player | Reason |
|---|---|---|
| Manchester City | Joško Gvardiol | Ankle injury |
| Manchester City | Mateo Kova?i? | Ankle injury |
| Nottingham Forest | Chris Wood | Injury |
| Nottingham Forest | Nicolò Savona | Post-surgery |
| Nottingham Forest | Willy Boly | Injury |
The Title Race Implications
The Man City Vs Nottingham Forest draw inflicted real damage on Guardiola’s hopes of closing the gap on Arsenal, who earned a result of their own on the same midweek evening.
City’s failure to see out the game reflected a recurring theme of their 2025-26 campaign, with this draw bringing the total number of points dropped from winning positions across the season to 13.
Forest, for all the chaos of their managerial merry-go-round, showed remarkable collective resilience to claim a point that moved them off the bottom of the table on goal difference.
Gibbs-White was outstanding throughout, constantly creating danger from his position behind Jesus, while Sels was superb in goal when called upon at the other end.
Guardiola, clearly frustrated at the final whistle, acknowledged his side had not done enough in the second half to close the game out effectively.