The Liam Delap first Nottingham Forest goal arrived at Villa Park on Saturday afternoon, the club-record signing lashing home to put Oliver Glasner’s side in front against Aston Villa.
Delap, who joined from Chelsea for a reported £50 million in August, was making only his third appearance for the Reds after a substitute debut at Liverpool and a first start against Tottenham. The Nottingham Post’s live coverage described the finish as a rocket, and it briefly looked as though he had a second when he found the net again just past the hour. The offside flag went up and a VAR check confirmed the decision, chalking off another fierce hit from a Morgan Gibbs-White pass. It was a marked change from the positional numbers that had dogged his opening weeks at the City Ground.
Villa hit back after the Liam Delap first Nottingham Forest goal
Forest had been the better side after the interval, with Dan Ndoye heading over from a Gibbs-White cross and Delap glancing a header into the side netting. Villa’s response came from a corner: Matz Sels saved from Mbaye, the pressure kept coming, and Alysson met John McGinn’s delivery with a header to level it at 1-1. Glasner reacted immediately, sending on Igor Jesus for Ndoye.
The head coach had already been forced into changes before kick-off. Nikola Milenkovic and Jair Cunha were both left out with hamstring tightness, handing summer arrivals Ousmane Diomande and Daniel Muñoz their first league starts for the club.
Delap’s goal is the headline either way. Forest went into the afternoon with two points from three games and no win in 2026/27, and the £50m striker finally opening his account is the clearest sign yet that Glasner’s front line is starting to click.
