Barcelona vs Nottingham Forest
Nottingham Forest are among the three teams participating in the inaugural Friuli Venezia Giulia Cup, beginning this Saturday at the Bluenergy Stadium in Udine, Italy. It’s a unique preseason tournament featuring them, Barcelona, and Udinese, where they’ll play several 45-minute matches to ramp up their conditioning, give their fringe players a chance to prove their worth, and experiment with their rotations.
Under Oliver Glasner, the Tricky Trees have shown promise in their preseason preparations, posting victories against Notts County (2-0), Blackburn Rovers (3-0), and Portimonense (2-1), while drawing 1-1 with Vitoria SC and losing 4-1 to Sporting. They will open their 2026-27 campaign away to Leeds United on August 22.
As for Barcelona, this is only their third Club Friendly. After opening their preseason with a 4-1 win over CE Europa, the Blaugrana lost to Birmingham City via penalties with their youth-laden lineup. They will look ahead to their La Liga opener against Elche on August 23.
Talking Points
More time to shine for the Barcelona youngsters
With most of their core players having competed in the World Cup, Barcelona have used the preseason to integrate their fringe players, some academy youngsters, and their new arrivals. During their loss to Birmingham City last weekend, Karim Adeyemi made his first start after arriving from Borussia Dortmund, but he wasn’t the one who stood out.
Hamza Abdelkarim seized the spotlight in the said match, as he scored both of Barcelona’s goals – one from the penalty spot and one via a tap-in after the opposing goalkeeper parried Roony Bardghji’s shot. The 18-year-old striker was a key member of their youth team that won the U-19 league last term, having scored six goals in 11 matches, including a hat-trick in half an hour against Montecarlo on the final matchday.
With some of their regulars coming back, it’s safe to assume that head coach Hansi Flick will bring them on in this preseason tournament. However, Frenkie de Jong is not expected to be there, as the Dutchman continues to recover from his knee injury.
In other Club Friendly 2026 news, the Blaugrana have recently put Marc Casado on the chopping block. If Barcelona are short on players against Nottingham Forest, the 22-year-old midfielder may get another chance to impress.
Nottingham Forest continue to manage injury concerns
Nottingham Forest were nearly relegated to the Championship after finishing 16th in the Premier League last term. The Tricky Trees had four managerial changes and a surprise run to the Europa League semi-finals, so their fans are hoping for better days ahead.
Leading the rebuild is Oliver Glasner, who is coming off a fruitful time with Crystal Palace. So far, Nottingham Forest are off to a positive start, and they will fancy their SBOTOP Club Friendly 2026 odds against Barcelona. However, they are expected to be without at least three first-team players this Saturday.
Murillo remains sidelined after suffering a thigh problem during the final weeks of 2026-27 and is not yet ready to return. Callum Hudson-Odoi is on the mend but is expected to be available at the start of next season. Nicolo Savona is also doubtful against Barcelona, as the Italian full-back is still working his way back to full fitness.
History
The Friuli Venezia Giulia Cup is a momentous occasion for all three clubs involved. For Barcelona, this will be their first visit to Udine in almost two decades, since they faced Udinese in the 2005-06 Champions League group stage on December 7, 2005. Meanwhile, it will be the first time Nottingham Forest has played in Udine.
As mentioned, the three-way tournament will consist of three 45-minute games. If scores are level after regulation, the winner will be determined by the penalty shootout. The winning team will get two points, and the losing team gets one point. However, if a team wins in regulation, it will take three points.
This isn’t the first time Barcelona have competed in a triangular preseason tournament. Their last such competition was during the 2002-03 preseason in Amsterdam, where they played against Ajax and Parma in 90-minute matches. The Blaugrana won 4-2 against Parma but lost to Ajax.
Moreover, Saturday marks only the third time Nottingham Forest and Barcelona will face off. The Tricky Trees are undefeated against the Blaugrana, having secured a 1-0 win during the first leg of the 1980 UEFA Super Cup Final, courtesy of Charlie George’s early goal. The two sides shared the spoils in a 1-1 draw in the second leg, with Roberto Dinamite and Kenneth Burns on the scoresheet. As a result, Nottingham Forest won via an aggregate tally of 2-1.
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