Nottingham Forest on the rise: Attack on the Champions League places

The current Premier League season holds numerous surprises, and one particularly remarkable one is the rise of Nottingham Forest. After a narrow 2-1 home win against Aston Villa, the former underdog is proving to be a serious contender in the race for the coveted Champions League spots. This assessment is shared by Aston Villa's coach Unai Emery, who now sees his team in direct competition with Forest. Thanks to a late winning goal by Anthony Elanga, Nottingham Forest climbed to fourth place in the standings and is now three points ahead of the Villans, who currently occupy sixth place. The gap to Arsenal in third place is only two points. Emery remains composed: "We are in the middle of the process and need to understand the situation. Nottingham Forest is now our direct rival." Emery, who led his team to fourth place last season, is now under pressure to ensure consistency in his team's performances. After the narrowly missed opportunity against Forest, Aston Villa will need to focus on achieving stability in the table and decisively winning their upcoming matches. The next step for Aston Villa is a home game against the reigning champions Manchester City on December 21st. Nottingham Forest, on the other hand, will face Brentford away on the same day. Both matches will be crucial for the ambitions of the two teams.