Nottingham Forest will be attempting to end two unwanted streaks when they play host to Bournemouth on Saturday afternoon.
Nuno Espirito Santo's side head into their Premier League opener with the Cherries on the back of a productive period in the transfer market.
Goalkeeper Carlos Miguel, defender Nikola Milenkovic, midfielder Elliot Anderson and playmaker Jota Silva have all been added to the squad.
There is high optimism that Forest can enjoy a season further away from the relegation zone than in the last two campaigns, while a home fixture against Bournemouth will be deemed to be an opportunity to make the perfect start.
Nevertheless, taking a look at things from an historical perspective, Forest fans will not get ahead of themselves ahead of the showdown with the Cherries.
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An unlikely run...
With both of these teams having spent recent seasons in the Premier League or Championship, they are no strangers to having crossed paths and are viewed on a similar level in terms of recent achievements.
However, Forest have failed to win a single league game in their last eight such encounters against the South Coast outfit, dating back to 2015.
Bournemouth have recorded five victories and three draws during that period, although two of the last four contests have ended in 1-1 draws.
That said, those two fixtures took place at the Vitality Stadium, and Bournemouth have prevailed on their most recent three visits to the City Ground.
Remarkably, those last two successes have come by 3-2 scorelines with Dominic Solanke - no longer at Bournemouth - netting a hat-trick in the corresponding 2023-24 fixture in December.
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Forest have an even worse opening-day streak
Positive starts have been in short supply for Forest in recent seasons with five successive defeats being posted in the first games of a campaign.
On every occasion, Forest have conceded exactly two goals, with the meeting at Arsenal 12 months ago ending in a spirited 2-1 reverse.
In sharp contrast, Bournemouth have avoided defeat in each of their last four Premier League openers, posting two victories and two draws respectively.
Darren Plant
