Aston Villa player ratings as John McGinn scores twice in Premier League win against Nottingham Forest

Villa's captain scored twice to put Forest away and move the team into second

The best way to overcome a defeat is to limit its damage and win the next game.

Aston Villa did that with a 3-1 win over Nottingham Forest in the Premier League. If Villa weren’t under any real pressure for the loss against Arsenal, their next game was a different story. They could lose one of these matches but not two, and second place was temporarily up for grabs to boot.

Chances came and went in a dominant first quarter of an hour and Villa had to remain patient as in incredibly compact Forest gradually stepped out of their half. They got the goal – in truth, it always felt like they would – and the result was never in doubt from then on.

Here are the ratings:

Emiliano Martínez - 7

Made his first save on half an hour and fielded the shot well. Had little else to do but was fine with his feet when the ball took a rare journey into the Villa half. Beaten by a fine Morgan Gibbs-White finish for 2-1.

Matty Cash - 7

Afforded huge amounts of space early on and consistently made runs into the channel with Forest opting for narrow defending. Presented a constant threat, albeit with a mixed bag in terms of final ball. Lovely, sharp assist for John McGinn’s goal. Went off late.

Ezri Konsa - 7

Strutted forward early on and clipped a smart ball in behind for Cash. With Forest settled into a five-man midfield out of possession, Konsa had licence to try and nick the ball in their half. Very cool in rare moments under pressure.

Victor Lindelöf - 6

Kept it simple in possession and looked to be a threat from aerial situations in the final third. Villa didn’t have to defend much in the first half but Lindelöf was spotless when called upon until a rash tackle on the half hour.

Ian Maatsen - 6

Allowed to hold his width and play high on the left, and was a threat as a result. Went close with a shot from 20 yards in the 17th minute. Miscontrolled the ball from a long pass, leading to a Forest corner, but defensive work was mostly tidy enough.

Once or twice looked a little sloppy playing Forest players onside. Substituted in the middle of the second half.

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Boubacar Kamara - 8

Ferocious out of possession from the start. Once Villa had the lead, he was in full Rolls-Royce mode. Elite.

Youri Tielemans - 9

Outstanding. A complete performance. Immediately involved with and without the ball. Pass selection was impeccable and he ran the game from midfield. Efficient in the middle but also had the killer ball ready to go when higher up. Played a huge part in the goal that made it 1-0 and produced a truly wonderful pass for the 3-1 goal.

John McGinn - 8

Wasted an attack by clipping in a cross to nobody after nine minutes, the lowlight of an unusually ragged start from the captain.

Quality in the final third was lacking initially but tucked in a beauty to make it 2-0 in the 49th minute and made it 3-1 with a smart finish into an open net from distance after a John Victor error. Substituted in the last ten minutes.

Emi Buendía - 6

Not involved enough with Villa dominating the ball early but never found wanting for effort on the counter-press. Free kick in the second half was well struck but never troubling the target. Substituted in the middle of the second half.

Morgan Rogers - 7

Caught Forest in possession in their own box as early as the second minute. Able to get himself into the box frequently but just short of the final moment of quality. Eventually claimed an assist for Watkins’ goal.

Ollie Watkins - 7

Should have given Villa the lead from Rogers’ early steal but John Victor made an excellent save. Had a number of opportunities in the first half to tee up a teammate after holding the ball up in the box but unable to connect. Broke the deadlock with a fabulous drive in first-half stoppage time.

Did some useful work without the ball before he was substituted late.

Substitutes

Lucas Digne (for Maatsen, 68) - Quickly settled in on the left. 6

Jadon Sancho (for Buendía, 69) - Immediately involved on the ball and played a small part in the lead-up to Villa’s third. 6

Donyell Malen (for Watkins, 83) - Late substitute. N/A

Lamare Bogarde (for McGinn, 83) - Late substitute. N/A

Andrés García (for Cash, 89) - Late substitute. N/A