Nottingham

Chris Collinson
BBC Sport statistician

There can often be a lot of focus on distances covered and sprints made by teams, but how much of a difference does it really make to their success?

When it comes to distance covered by teams it is the 'battle of the B's' with Bournemouth, Brighton and Brentford having covered the most ground in the Premier League so far this season.

At the other end of the scale, bottom side Wolves have run the least so far - 5km fewer than any other side.

Initially, I thought this could be due to how difficult their start has been (i.e. sitting deep and not rushing out against top opponents), but they actually rank mid-table in pressing stats (with no players missing via red cards either).

But, it is worth noting that running a lot does not necessarily equal success.

Nottingham Forest, Fulham, Chelsea and Aston Villa have also been the 'laziest' teams so far yet have started the season well.

It is a similar story when it comes to sprints too - some good teams sprint a lot, some good teams sprint little.

Tottenham have made the most sprints in the Premier League this campaign, followed by fellow high-pressers Liverpool and Bournemouth.

But defending champions Manchester City have made the least – 60 fewer than any other team – and yet they have been pretty good so far too.

Looking at which teams have made the most sprints – Spurs, Liverpool, Chelsea – and which the fewest – City, Arsenal, Villa – it suggests that playing style plays a part in how much a team sprints as well as just work rate.

Ben Ramsdale
BBC Sport journalist

Nottingham Forest boss Nuno Espirito Santo has been speaking to the media before Sunday's Premier League game against Chelsea (kick-off 14:00 BST).

Here are the key lines from his news conference:

• Nuno confirmed both Danilo and Ibrahim Sangare will be out for the trip to Chelsea.

• On FA charges for Evangelos Marinakis: "I'm not aware of the situation. I'm aware of the charge but I don't know many details about it."

• On Morgan Gibbs-White's return from suspension: "It's very important to have him back - he's a very special player for us. [With] his talent, the team relies on him to produce things. I'm happy for him to have been called up [to England] again."

• On the team's defensive strength with only five goals conceded so far this season: "It's always important, no matter who your opponent. You have to realise what strengths they have and how to control them. The team has been solid and compact but it's about teamwork. [It is] not only the defensive line and midfield, it starts with pressure from the front. It's going to be very important against Chelsea because they have good players and play good football."

• On the balance of his side: "That's the big issue in football, finding the balance and what works in both boxes. We are producing a lot but we should be more clinical. I believe that we are going to improve."

• He said the team "cannot ignore" Chelsea's Cole Palmer but insisted that the Forest game plan is not based on trying to stop one player.

• Nuno dismissed questions on VAR: "We are trying to ignore it. For now, it is not an issue for us and let's try and keep it this way. We are always expecting the referees and VAR to make the better decisions for the game. This is our message and this is how we approach for now."

Follow all of Friday's Premier League news conferences and the rest of the day's football news

Image source, Getty Images

On Sunday, Nottingham Forest face Chelsea at Stamford Bridge - the ground where Anthony Elanga scored his first goal for Forest in a 1-0 win last season.

The Sweden international is excited about returning to that corner of London and believes Forest can pull off a similar result.

"Hopefully we can go there, just be brave and believe we can go there and win," he told BBC Radio Nottingham's Shut Up And Show More Football podcast. "I feel like we've got the players to do so.

"We respect Chelsea - they've had a great start to their season, but it's important we stick to what we know best and try to play our game. Hopefully, we can get three points."

Forest started the campaign by going five Premier League games without defeat, before losing to Fulham at the City Ground last time out.

However, Nuno's side remain unbeaten away from home and, as well as showing improved form on the road this term, they have been much more difficult to score against - only Liverpool (two) have conceded fewer than Forest in the opening weeks of the campaign.

"It's been a fairly good start to the season," Elanga added. "We've had a few games where we could have finished teams off but it's still early doors, we've still got so many more games to go and I feel like we're on a good path.

"We've done well with clean sheets so far but we can do even better. We're not the finished article - we can always improve and I feel like we will.

"We're attacking together and defending well together. The biggest game that showed that was at Liverpool [where Forest won 1-0]. We defended well and then myself and Callum [Hudson-Odoi] came off the bench and created a goal."

Listen to the full episode on BBC Sounds

Image source, Getty Images

No side’s Premier League games have produced more goals than Chelsea’s so far this season (22), while Nottingham Forest’s matches have seen the fewest (11).

A new episode of BBC Radio Nottingham's Shut Up And Show More Football podcast is now available.

There is an exclusive chat with Forest forward Anthony Elanga about the season so far and beating Chelsea at Stamford Bridge last season.

And Matt Davies-Adams, a Reds fan who commentates for Chelsea TV, joins the team to help preview Sunday's meeting.

Listen to the full episode on BBC Sounds