Forest visit Villa Park

Aston Villa look to secure successive victories on Saturday, when hosting Nottingham Forest at Villa Park.

Unai Emery’s men claimed their first win of 2026/27 on Tuesday evening, when defeating Club Brugge 3-2 in their opening UEFA Champions League league phase encounter in Belgium.

The Villans now look to claim their first three points of the Premier League campaign against Oliver Glasner’s team to build on last weekend’s point in a goalless draw at Hull City.

Forest begin the season with a new manager after Glasner’s appointment over the summer, though the Austrian has endured a less-than-ideal start to life in Nottingham, with two draws and two defeats from his first four competitive matches.

The Reds fell to successive home losses against Leeds United in their opening two outings in the league and Carabao Cup, though have picked up with draws against Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur in the last two games.

Stats

Villa have won each of their last six Premier League home games against Nottingham Forest. The only side they have won seven in a row against at home in the competition are Derby County from 1996 to 2007. 

Forest have lost nine of their 18 Premier League games against Aston Villa (W3 D6), only losing 10+ times against four sides in the competition: Arsenal, Everton, Manchester United, and Newcastle United (all 11). 

Villa are yet to win (D1 L2) or score in the Premier League so far this season; no side has failed to score in their opening four games of a campaign in successive seasons in England’s top four tiers, with Villa having done so in 2025/26. 

Only Bournemouth (12), Brentford (11) and Leeds United (11) have drawn more Premier League games in 2026 than Nottingham Forest (10), while only Andoni Iraola (33) has overseen more draws than Forest boss Oliver Glasner since arriving in the competition in February 2024 (31).  

Villa rank 19th for expected goals (2.6), 18th for touches in the opposition’s box (45) and 16th for xG per shot (0.1) in the Premier League so far this season.  

Nottingham Forest have spent 12.2% of their time in set-piece phases in the Premier League this season, more than any other side, while only Manchester City (80.8%) and Fulham (76.5%) have spent more time in build-up phases than Villa (76.1%).  

Forest boss Oliver Glasner never lost to Unai Emery’s Aston Villa side as Crystal Palace manager in the Premier League (P5 W3 D2). It’s the joint-most he’s faced a particular club without defeat (also 5 v Wolves) and outright most he has faced another manager without losing in the competition. 

Among the 37 players in the Premier League so far this season to attempt 20+ long passes, only five have a higher passing accuracy than Villa’s Zion Suzuki (56.5% - 13/23), while he ranks first for goalkeepers overall. 

Only Anthony Elanga (17) and Kai Havertz (15) made more off-ball runs in behind on MD3 of the Premier League than Villa’s Nicolas Jackson (13).  

Only Morgan Rogers (9) has created more chances from open play in the Premier League this season than Nottingham Forest’s James McAtee (8), with his five chances created last time out against Tottenham Hotspur the joint-most by a player in a game this term. 

The Last Meeting

The last meeting between these two sides was a memorable one as far as Villa were concerned, as they booked their spot in the Europa League final on a special night in B6.

Trailing 1-0 from the first leg of the semi-final, Unai Emery’s men levelled the tie on aggregate in the opening period thanks to Ollie Watkins’ close-range finish.

Emi Buendía edged them in front from the penalty spot just before the hour mark, before a late double from captain John McGinn capped off an unforgettable evening, sending the Villans to Istanbul.

Team News 

Unai Emery confirmed Matty Cash and Johan Manzambi would be assessed ahead of the clash. Cash missed Champions League action through injury in midweek, while Manzambi - alongside fellow summer signing Ibrahim Mbaye - is still to make his Villa debut. 

João Gomes serves the final game of his domestic suspension, while Brian Madjo and Leon Goretzka remain ruled out with injury alongside long-term absentee Amadou Onana. 

Speaking at his pre-match press conference, Oliver Glasner revealed defender Nicolò Savona is the only player ruled out through injury for Forest, after undergoing knee surgery earlier this year.

Ibrahim Sangaré missed Forest’s recent draw with Liverpool through injury and wasn’t named in last weekend’s matchday squad, but is available for selection.

Managers' Pre-Match Thoughts