Ola Aina and Orel Mangala got on the scoresheet as Nottingham Forest defeated Aston Villa in their Premier League clash on Sunday afternoon. Forest picked up their first Premier League win since early September with the important result at the City Ground.
The hosts now move up to 12th in the Premier League table, while Villa’s unbeaten run of six league games is over. Nottingham Forest picked up their first Premier League win since early September with a 2-0 win over Aston Villa at the City Ground.
The home side started the quicker of the two and took the lead in the fifth minute when Ola Aina guided a powerful long shot into the bottom corner. Forest looked the more likely to score for the rest of the opening period.
Straight after half-time they doubled their lead, when Emiliano Martinez failed to keep out a speculative long drive from Orel Mangala. The visitors dominated the second half in terms of possession but were kept at bay by a spirited defensive rearguard spearheaded by Moussa Niakhate.
Forest move up to 12th in the Premier League table, while Villa’s unbeaten run of six league games is over.
TALKING POINT
A reality check for Aston Villa. It doesn’t take long to come back down to earth in the Premier League. Villa have been flying lately and had the chance to go up to third table with victory at the City Ground.
Unai Emery has rightly received praise for his work so far, but a flat performance and a defeat today are a reminder of how tough it is to stay at the top end of this league. They’ve been free-scoring so far in 2023-24 but were kept at bay by a defiant Forest team.
Villa have come a long way under Emery, but the top four places that are nearby at this early stage of the season could slowly disappear from view in the coming weeks. Three of their next five are away to Tottenham and then at home to Arsenal and Manchester City. There's been progress, but today was a reminder that they're still a work in progress.
PLAYER OF THE MATCH – MOUSSA NIAKHATE (NOTTINGHAM FOREST)
Their two goals aside, Nottingham Forest were dominated in terms of possession and territory at the City Ground. The key to only their third clean sheet in all competitions was a dominant performance by Niakhate.
His astute reading of Villa’s attacks in the left half of the pitch nullified so may positions of promise for the visitors, who are one of the highest scoring teams in the Premier League.
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