Aston Villa 1-2 Nottingham Forest: Match Report, Goals, Stats and Ratings
Premier League Matchday 4 · Saturday 12 September 2026 · Villa Park, Birmingham · referee A. Madley · full time
Full time: Aston Villa 1-2 Nottingham Forest
Nottingham Forest won 2-1 away at Aston Villa in Premier League Matchday 4 on Saturday 12 September 2026. The goals: Liam Delap 46', Alysson 74', Igor Jesus 88'.
How Nottingham Forest won it
Nottingham Forest struck first through Liam Delap in the 46th minute, set up by Murillo. Aston Villa levelled at 1-1 in the 74th minute through Alysson, set up by John McGinn . Igor Jesus made it 1-2 to Nottingham Forest in the 88th minute, set up by Morgan Gibbs-White.
It was 0-0 at half-time, and the second half changed the result.
The referee, A. Madley, showed 7 yellow cards: 2 to Aston Villa and 5 to Nottingham Forest.
Aston Villa: U. Emery Etxegoien, 4-2-3-1 · Nottingham Forest: O. Glasner, 3-4-2-1.
Moneyball's prediction against the result
Moneyball did not publish a pre-match estimate for this match, so there is nothing to mark it against.
Why it went this way
On the day the expected goals were 2.27 for Aston Villa and 1.06 for Nottingham Forest.
Aston Villa scored about 1.3 fewer than their chances were worth: poor finishing, or a goalkeeper at his best.
Aston Villa created the better chances, 2.27 xG to 1.06, and still lost. On chances alone, the result could easily have gone the other way.
Aston Villa had 5 shots on target, Nottingham Forest 7.
Aston Villa's goalkeeper made 5 saves.
Aston Villa had 54% of the ball, but Nottingham Forest took the points.
Where the two sides stood before this match
Aston Villa came into it with 5 Premier League matches played, scoring 0.8 and conceding 1.8 a match, with 0.93 expected goals for and 1.77 against, and had won 20% of their matches.
Nottingham Forest came into it with 5 Premier League matches played, scoring 0.8 and conceding 1.0 a match, with 1.50 expected goals for and 1.08 against, and had won 20% of their matches.
Aston Villa vs Nottingham Forest: the match in numbers
| Aston Villa | Match statistics | Nottingham Forest |
|---|---|---|
| 54% | Ball possession | 46% |
| 2.27 | Expected goals (xG) | 1.06 |
| 7 | Total shots | 22 |
| 5 | Shots on target | 7 |
| 2 | Big chances | 6 |
| 421 | Total passes | 360 |
| 82% | Pass accuracy | 86% |
| 6 | Corners | 1 |
| 11 | Fouls | 16 |
| 0 | Offsides | 4 |
| 17 | Tackles | 23 |
| 5 | Saves | 5 |
| 2 | Yellow cards | 5 |
Team statistics from Sportmonks.
Player ratings and man of the match
Man of the match: Morgan Gibbs-White (Nottingham Forest), rated 8.1 by Sportmonks, with 1 assist.
Aston Villa
- Aaron Wan-Bissaka 7.0
- John McGinn 7.0
- Zion Suzuki 7.0
- Alysson 7.0 1 goal
- Tyrone Mings 6.8
Nottingham Forest
- Morgan Gibbs-White 8.1 1 assist
- Daniel Muñoz 7.6
- Xaver Schlager 7.5
- Matz Sels 7.4
- Liam Delap 7.3 1 goal
The lowest-rated starter was Emiliano Buendía at 6.2. Ratings run from 0 to 10; around 7.0 is a solid match.
What comes next
- Aston Villa: Aston Villa vs Brentford Saturday 10 October 2026 · Premier League
- Nottingham Forest: Crystal Palace vs Nottingham Forest Sunday 11 October 2026 · Premier League
Each preview has Moneyball's estimate for the next match, published before kick-off and marked against the result afterwards, as this one is.
Questions about Aston Villa vs Nottingham Forest
What was the score in Aston Villa vs Nottingham Forest?
Aston Villa 1-2 Nottingham Forest (half-time 0-0), Premier League, Saturday 12 September 2026.
Who scored in Aston Villa vs Nottingham Forest?
Liam Delap 46', Alysson 74', Igor Jesus 88'.
Did Moneyball predict Aston Villa vs Nottingham Forest correctly?
Moneyball did not publish a pre-match estimate for this match, so there is nothing to mark it against.
Who was man of the match in Aston Villa vs Nottingham Forest?
Morgan Gibbs-White, rated 8.1 by Sportmonks.
Who refereed Aston Villa vs Nottingham Forest?
A. Madley.
Every match, before and after
Moneyball Odds writes a preview with its estimate before every match of Europe's top five leagues and the European cups, then marks it against the result, hits and misses alike.
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