Aston Villa 3-1 Nottingham Forest: John McGinn double and Ollie Watkins stunner help Unai Emery's side get back to winning ways

03.01.2026, 17:03 skysports.com

A double from captain John McGinn and a stunner from Ollie Watkins helped Aston Villa get back to winning ways with a 3-1 victory against Nottingham Forest.

Villa were searching for a reaction after their 11-game winning streak was ended by Arsenal last time out but extending their unbeaten run at Villa Park to eight games, momentarily lifting them above Manchester City into second in the Premier League table, was the perfect remedy.

It had the makings of a frustrating afternoon for Villa after dominating 79 per cent of the ball in the first half but only recording one shot on target - until Ollie Watkins fired an emphatic effort into the top corner just before the break.

The striker, who has responded to his slow start to the season with four goals in three games, missed a golden chance to put Villa ahead in just the second minute but rectified the miss, which had an expected goals value of 0.61 xG, with his long-range strike to break the deadlock.

Captain John McGinn quickly netted a second for the hosts after the restart but their momentum and the atmosphere at Villa Park were blunted when Morgan Gibbs-White pulled one back for Forest just after the hour mark.

However, any hopes of a comeback were ended when John Victor inexplicably rushed out of his area to try and dispossess McGinn, who curled home his second of the afternoon from long range with the goalkeeper nowhere to be seen.

"What is Victor doing? He has made a terrible decision and that could end up costing Forest the game."

The win gives Unai Emery's side a 12-point gap on Chelsea in fifth, while a fourth defeat in a row for Forest leaves them within touching distance of West Ham in 18th ahead of their meeting, live on Sky Sports, on January 6.

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Forest's last trip to Villa Park in April arrived with the club sat in third place. From battling for Champions League football to fighting for survival in less than nine months.

Aston Villa: Martinez (7), Cash (8), Konsa (7), Lindelof (7), Maatsen (6), Kamara (7), Tielemans (8), McGinn (9), Buendia (6), Rogers (7), Watkins (8).Subs: Sancho (6), Bogarde (5), Digne (6), Garcia (n/a)Away Team: Victor (3), Aina (6), Murillo (6), Milenkovic (6), Williams (6), Dominguez (6), Anderson (6), Hutchinson (6), Bakwa (5), Gibbs-White (7), Igor Jesus (5).Subs:Savona (5), McAtee (5), Sels (5), Luiz (n/a), Kalimuendo (n/a).Player of the Match: John McGinn.

Aston Villa captain John McGinn speaking to Sky Sports:

"It was a poor result [against Arsenal] and we wanted to show a reaction. Maybe it's the start of another 11-game winning run.

"We knew we had to be at our best. A great win for us. I've been trying to add more goals to my game. The manager was hard on me this morning but thankfully I got two goals.

"We can watch the games with our feet up now. What we are building here is special."

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