Nottingham Forest player ratings vs Aston Villa – Omari Hutchinson 9/10, Igor Jesus struggles

Nottingham Forest picked up a 1-0 victory over Aston Villa in the Europa League semi-final first leg on Thursday at the City Ground.

It was a tight first half, with Emi Martinez on hand to pull off a fantastic save from Igor Jesus’ shot to keep the scoreline level at the break.

After the break, chances continued to remain limited, but a Digne handball inside the Villa box eventually led to a penalty for the hosts after a VAR check, which Chris Wood coolly converted.

From here, Forest were able to see out the remaining minute and will now take a massive advantage to Villa Park next week for the second leg.

Below, Football Insider has rated the players after a vital Forest victory.

Omari Hutchinson was a creative mastermind vs Aston Villa

While plenty of questions have been asked of Omari Hutchinson since his big-money move from Ipswich Town, in recent weeks, he has finally shown his ability.

Against Aston Villa, the winger was totally dominant against Digne and was able to create numerous chances for the hosts.

This eventually led to the opener, as Hutchinson’s cross hit the full-back’s arm, which eventually led to a penalty after a VAR check.

While he did not pick up a goal or an assist for his display, it was no doubt one of his best games in a Forest shirt yet.

Hopefully, this will continue for the second leg next week.

Igor Jesus disappoints for Nottingham Forest

Football Insider has exclusively revealed that Jesus is attracting interest from big clubs in Europe ahead of the summer, but his recent performance will not have helped him in this regard.

While the striker was not awful, he struggled to make a big impact up top throughout.

Taking a lead to Villa Park. 👊 pic.twitter.com/bheT1hGYkz— Nottingham Forest (@NFFC) April 30, 2026

Jesus failed to complete a single dribble or accurate cross, and the only chance that he had was saved, albeit it was a top stop from Martinez.

If Forest are to see out the rest of this tie, they need Jesus to improve at Villa Park.

The striker has been excellent in the Europa League all season, and the club needs a goalscoring display next week.

Nottingham Forest player ratings vs Aston Villa

• Stefan Ortega – 7/10
• Ola Aina – 7/10
• Nikola Milenkovic – 7/10
• Morato – 7/10
• Neco Williams – 6/10
• Omari Hutchinson – 9/10
• Nicolas Dominguez – 7/10
• Elliot Anderson – 8/10
• Morgan Gibbs-White – 7/10
• Igor Jesus – 5/10
• Chris Wood – 7/10

Substitutes

• Zach Abbott (on for Aina, 75’) – n/a
• Ryan Yates (on for Jesus, 90′) – n/a

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