Southampton 0-1 Nottingham Forest: Player ratings as Forest rise out of bottom three
Nottingham Forest secured their first Premier League away win since 1999 to pile even more misery on Southampton on Wednesday night.
Forest came into this game off the back of an impressive 1-1 draw with Chelsea on New Year’s Day and built on it in the best possible way by claiming victory in a crucial relegation six-pointer against the league’s bottom side to haul themselves out of the drop zone.
A close-range effort from Taiwo Awoniyi midway through the first half was enough to secure all three points, with Forest ultimately creating the better chances on the night.
Che Adams had missed an opportunity to give Southampton a lead earlier in the game that proved to be his team’s best sight of goal over the 90 minutes.
Brennan Johnson looked a threat for Forest and struck the bar only moments before laying on the crucial goal for Awoniyi, capitalising on a loose pass from Saints centre-back Lyanco and then squaring to his teammate across the face of the goal.
Southampton didn’t really come that close to threatening Dean Henderson in the Forest goal. The Saints have now lost six in a row in the Premier League and are three points adrift of safety.
Forest finish the day as high as 15th in the table, with Everton dropping into the bottom three.
Southampton player ratings (3-1-4-2)
GK: Bazunu (5); CB: Bella Kotchap (5), CB: Lyanco (5), CB: Salisu (6); DM: Lavia (6); RM: Walker-Peters (6), CM: Ward-Prowse (7), CM: Elyounoussi (5), LM: Perraud (6); ST: Mara (5), ST: Adams (5)
Substitutes
Caleta-Car (6), Aribo (6), A. Armstrong (6), Edozie (6), S. Armstrong (N/A)
Nottingham Forest player ratings (4-3-1-2)
GK: Henderson (7); RB: Aurier (8), CB: Worrall (7), CB: Boly (7), LB: Lodi (7); CM: Yates (7), CM: Freuler (6), CM: Mangala (6); AM: Gibbs-White (6); ST: Johnson (8), ST: Awoniyi (8)
Substitutes
Colback (6), Surridge (6), Scarpa (6), Toffolo (N/A), Williams (N/A)