Nottingham Forest hosted Aston Villa in the Premier League on Saturday, with both sides looking to cement their challenge for European football.
After Forest beat Manchester United last Saturday, Nuno Espirito Santo would’ve been hoping that his Forest squad would carry their momentum into the Villa clash.
Chris Sutton predicted a draw between Forest and Villa, which was a feeling shared between most pundits as the two clubs had accumulated the exact same results this season, with Forest and Villa level on points in the Premier League table.
The game was incredibly tight in the first half, but a remarkable save by Emi Martinez was followed quickly by a Jhon Duran header to give Villa control of the game.
Looking as if the game was petering towards a Villa victory, Chris Wood tapped home to level the score but VAR was there to rule the equaliser out.
Much to Forest’s delight, though, Nikolas Milenkovic was there just a few minutes later to head home Morgan Gibbs-White’s exceptional cross to equalise for Forest.
Forest didn’t settle for the draw, though, as Anthony Elanga tapped home an Elliot Anderson squad to secure all three points for his side.
Matz Sels – 6
Was mostly uninvolved in the first half in the Forest goal, making one save and looking solid enough on the ball. Perhaps could’ve done better to keep out Duran’s header but it came at him from an unexpected angle so was always going to struggle.
Ola Aina –
Aina was strong in his duels as Villa didn’t start with a natural winger. However, his struggle to impact the game further forward hindered Forest’s attempts at getting back level.
Nikola Milenkovic – 7
Scored the all-important equaliser to bring Forest back into the game. However, he was pulled out of position by Duran in the buildup to the opening goal which left the space for the striker in the box.
Murillo – 7
More involved in the Forest buildup than Milenkovic, Murillo enjoyed plenty of touches and completed some accurate long passes up to Chris Wood, along with more drilled balls into the final third.
Neco Williams – 8
Williams seems to have nailed down the left-back role at Nottingham Forest, producing another excellent display in defence. He was positionally strong, blocking well as Villa looked to find low crosses into the box for Duran.
Elliot Anderson – 8
He was perhaps fortunate to avoid giving away a penalty as he tugged on Morgan Rogers’ shirt in the first half, but his overall play was impressive in the Forest midfield. His determination then won the ball back for Forest, to then produce a perfect pass for Elanga to score.
Ryan Yates – 6
Picked up a knock in the first half and did well to last until being replaced on 68 minutes, didn’t put a foot wrong at the base of the Forest midfield.
Morgan Gibbs-White – 10
Central to any of Forest’s attacking threats as he often is. He won plenty of duels in the midfield and dribbled progressively, eventually earning his well-earned assist with Milenkovic’s equaliser.
Nicolas Dominguez- 5
Was denied the opening goal of the game by a miraculous point-blank save by Emi Martinez. Otherwise struggled to find space in the Forest attack with Gibbs-White occupying his preferred positions.
Callum Hudson-Odoi – 4
Not one of the winger’s strongest performances with many of his mazy dribbles ending in losing possession or a poor cross, much to the frustration of Wood up front.
Chris Wood – 5
The Kiwi was always going to struggle in what was an incredibly tight game, only managing one shot in the first half with very few touches. When required, though, he was there to tap home Anthony Elanga’s low cross and was unlucky to see that the winger was offside.
Substitutes
Morato – 6
Replaced Murillo after Villa’s goal, just as Forest looked to up the tempo from an attacking perspective so he was spared of too much defensive work. He looked solid in his few duels, though.
Jota Silva – 4
Was almost invisible after being introduced with 20 minutes to play, Silva struggled to find space on the ball when Forest needed more attacking flair.
Anthony Elanga – 8
His run and cross were excellent in the buildup for Wood’s ruled-out equaliser but was adjudged to be offside. However, his positioning was superb to tap home Anderson’s cross for Forest’s winner.
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