Villa take the lead

Aston Villa went in front at Nottingham Forest on Sunday when Murillo turned Morgan Rogers’ cross into his own net in the 23rd minute. (skysports.com) Sky Sports listed the goal as “Murillo (23 og),” and Reuters’ live photo feed from the City Ground identified the play as Nottingham Forest defender Murillo scoring Aston Villa’s first with an own goal on April 12, 2026. (skysports.com) (reutersconnect.com) The match was played at the City Ground in Nottingham, with ESPN listing Aston Villa fourth in the Premier League on 54 points before kickoff and Nottingham Forest 16th on 32 points. (espn.co.uk) (premierleague.com) That made the opener significant at both ends of the table: Villa started the day six points clear in the race for Champions League qualification, while Forest were level on points with 17th-placed West Ham United and only two points above 18th-placed Tottenham Hotspur. (sports.yahoo.com) (premierleague.com) The goal also landed in a fixture packed into Forest’s April run. Nottingham Forest’s official site listed Porto on April 9, Aston Villa on April 12, Porto again on April 16, and Burnley on April 19. (nottinghamforest.co.uk) Premier League records showed this was Matchweek 32 of the 2025-26 season, with Forest hosting Villa at 14:00 local time on April 12. (premierleague.com 1) (premierleague.com 2) The teams came in with different recent trajectories. Aston Villa had beaten Nottingham Forest 3-1 on January 3, 2026, and had also won the same fixture 2-1 at Villa Park on April 5, 2025. (skysports.com 1) (skysports.com 2) By the time the own goal went in, ESPN’s live game page showed Villa with a slight edge in possession, 54.1 percent to 45.9 percent, in the opening phase. (espn.co.uk) The opening scoreline was the kind of single sequence that can dominate a matchday feed: one deflection, one credited own goal, and one immediate swing in a game with European stakes for Villa and relegation pressure for Forest. (skysports.com) (premierleague.com)