Nottingham Forest move out of the relegation zone with 1-0 win at Southampton

Nottingham Forest moved out of the relegation zone with their first Premier League away win of the season, defeating Southampton 1-0 at St. Mary's this evening.

Taiwo Awoniyi's first-half strike was the difference between the two sides, in a game that could prove to be a real relegation six-pointer, with the Saints now four points from safety.

The first good opportunity of the game fell the way of the hosts, with Kyle Walker-Peters feeding through Che Adams over the top of Willy Boly, but the striker fluffed his lines despite having plenty of time, pulling his half-volley wide of the post.

During the opening 10 minutes, Southampton seemed to be well on top, but Forest grew into the game after a slow start and nearly took the lead against the run of play when Ryan Yates's shot fell to Brennan Johnson, but he could only hit the bar from close range.

Both teams started the night in the relegation zone, so the players would have been well aware of the importance of the game, but it was by no means a cagey affair in the opening exchanges, and there were some great chances for either side.

That moment probably should have been the wake-up call for the Saints, but the visitors continued to threaten on the break and got their reward in the 26th minute when Lyanco badly misplaced a pass meant for Mohammed Salisu.

Johnson made up for his previous miss by capitalising on the centre-back's error, racing through on goal and squaring the ball to Awoniyi, who coolly tapped home to net his fourth league goal of the season and give his side the lead.