Aston Villa vs Nottingham Forest – News and Probable Lineups

This Saturday afternoon at Villa Park, two Premier League teams will face off in search of their first victory of the new campaign, as Aston Villa takes on Nottingham Forest.

The encounter serves as a rematch of the previous season’s Europa League semi-final, where Aston Villa achieved a convincing 4-1 aggregate victory with all four goals scored in a commanding second-leg display on home soil.

Match overview

So far this season, Aston Villa has not managed to win or score in their Premier League matches, following consecutive losses to Brighton (4-0) and defending champions Arsenal (1-0), culminating in a goalless draw against Hull City, who have made an impressive start to the season.

Under Unai Emery’s management, the team aims to prevent becoming the first side in the top four tiers of English football not to score in each of their opening four matches in consecutive seasons, having already experienced this in the 2025-26 campaign.

The Midlands club has found it difficult to create attacking opportunities, ranking 19th for expected goals (2.6), 18th for touches within the opponent’s penalty area (45), and 16th for expected goals per shot (0.1) in the Premier League after three games.

Nevertheless, Villa displayed a resurgence in their attacking prowess, securing a 3-2 victory against Club Brugge in the Champions League on Tuesday, a “very important step forward” according to Emery.

Aston Villa will be confident they can replicate this success on Saturday, as they have triumphed in their last six Premier League home fixtures against Nottingham Forest. The only team they have managed to defeat in seven consecutive home outings in the top flight are Forest’s rivals Derby County, from 1996 to 2007.

Nottingham Forest finds themselves in uncharted territory, yet to secure a victory in their opening three Premier League matches, and their new head coach, Oliver Glasner, is also searching for his first win, with two draws and two losses in four competitive fixtures.

Following two home defeats against Leeds United in both the league and the EFL Cup, Forest managed a commendable 2-2 draw with Liverpool at Anfield, but were held to a frustrating goalless draw by Tottenham Hotspur at the City Ground last weekend.

Glasner, who is still searching for his maiden victory in the Premier League as a manager (D5 L5 in his last 10 matches), expressed frustration that his side “lost two points” against Spurs, feeling that Neco Williams’s disallowed goal in the second half should have counted.

Currently, only Bournemouth (12), Brentford (11), and Leeds (11) have drawn more Premier League fixtures in 2026 than Forest (10), with Andoni Iraola (33) the only manager having overseen more stalemates than Glasner (31) since entering the division in February 2024.

A successful return to winning form is uncertain for the Tricky Trees on Saturday, as they have recorded just three wins, six draws, and nine losses across their last 18 Premier League encounters with Aston Villa. They have only incurred more defeats in the division against Arsenal, Everton, Man United, and Newcastle (all with 11).

However, Forest might find solace in the fact that Glasner has a solid record against Emery; during his tenure at Crystal Palace, he never lost to Emery’s Villa, earning 11 points from a possible 15 (W3 D2).

Team News

Aston Villa will be without four injured players: Leon Goretzka, Johan Manzambi, Amadou Onana (all due to knee injuries), and Brian Madjo (ankle injury). Joao Gomes will also miss out as he completes a three-match suspension.

Matty Cash was sidelined during the midweek Champions League match due to muscle fatigue and has emerged as a potential doubt. Therefore, new acquisition Aaron Wan-Bissaka may keep his position at right-back.

Another new signing, Taylor Harwood-Bellis, was excluded from Villa’s Champions League squad but is available for selection this weekend and could compete with Victor Lindelof for a starting spot in central defence.

Ibrahim Mbaye, signed for £47m from PSG, will be eager to make his full debut on either wing, though Emery may opt to retain teenage prodigy George Hemmings and John McGinn in wide areas while Nicolas Jackson spearheads the attack, looking to score in consecutive matches.

As for Nottingham Forest, Nicolo Savona continues to miss games with a knee injury, while Ibrahim Sangare’s calf issue will be assessed before the match following his absence against Tottenham.

James McAtee, who has created eight chances from open play this season, has only been surpassed by Chelsea’s Morgan Rogers (nine) and will aim to secure his place in central midfield alongside Xaver Schlager, potentially fending off competition from Sangare if he is fit.

Glasner may be tempted to give Daniel Munoz his full debut at right wing-back at the expense of Ola Aina, while Callum Hudson-Odoi, Igor Jesus, and Chris Wood will all be striving to re-enter a Forest attack that has not scored in three of their first four matches this season.

Aston Villa probable starting XI:

Suzuki; One-Bissaka, Lindelof, Torres, Maatsen; Chamber, Barkley; McGinn, Buendia, Hemmings; Jackson

Nottingham Forest probable starting XI:

Sels; Milenkovic, Cunha, Murillo; Munoz, Schlager, McAtee, Williams; Gibbs-White, Jesus; Delap

Both teams are keen to secure their first three points of the season, but Aston Villa, buoyed by their uplifting midweek victory, holds a mental edge given their strong home record against Forest.

Although Forest is capable of implementing a disciplined tactical approach under Glasner, their noticeable lack of clinical finishing could once again be detrimental, leading us to side with the home team to emerge victorious in a close match.