Aston Villa produced an impressive response after their recent loss to Arsenal, beating Nottingham Forest 3-1 at Villa Park. The home side dominated large parts of the match and earned a vital victory in the Premier League race.

Villa opened the scoring just before halftime when Ollie Watkins fired a powerful long-range shot into the net. The goal marked his fourth in three matches and came on his 250th appearance for the club.

Also Read: Mozambique records first-ever AFCON victory in 39 years

Early in the second half, Villa doubled their lead. John McGinn finished calmly after a well-timed pass from Matty Cash, putting the hosts firmly in control.

Nottingham Forest showed some fight when Morgan Gibbs-White scored in the 61st minute, reducing the gap to 2-1 and briefly raising hopes of a comeback.

Those hopes were ended in the 73rd minute. A goalkeeping mistake left Forest’s net exposed, and McGinn made no mistake as he scored his second goal to seal the win.

Also Read: Morocco defeats Zambia, reaches AFCON last 16

The victory lifts Aston Villa to second place in the Premier League table, sitting just behind Arsenal and ahead of Manchester City. Nottingham Forest remain near the bottom and continue to struggle for crucial points.