Emery hails his Villa side’s response as they return to winning ways against Nottingham Forest | OneFootball

Unai Emery challenged his Aston Villa side to go on another winning run after they got back to winning ways against Nottingham Forest.

Ollie Watkins scored and John McGinn bagged a brace to give the Villans victory.

Emery’s men lost to Arsenal in their last game before Forest which brought to an end a winning run of eight Premier League games in a row. They had won 11 in a row in all competitions.

The Spaniard was already looking ahead to the next game when he spoke after the match: “To beat (Crystal) Palace is very difficult and we want to win lots of matches in a row. Today is done. We must work harder. We must now rest, then Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday work.”

McGinn has been a vital cog for Emery for years, but his numbers have at times lacked. And Emery was pleased to see the Scotsman delivering.

“We need goals from the players, the strikers, the midfielders, everybody. I try to set ambitions individually. They have their targets and John McGinn needs to score goals like he did today.”

Watkins has now scored six league goals since the start of December, which is more than any other player in the Premier League.

Villa dominated proceedings against Sean Dyche’s side, and Emery was pleased at the level of control he saw: “So good, these three points. We needed rest and work to get ready for this match. The players responded fantastically to the demands we set. We dominated with the possession, the positioning and we did it with our mentality to keep our momentum.”