Winning run goes John & on

VILLA GET DOUBLE MCGINN & TONIC BUT FOREST ARE CHRONIC

- BY JONATHAN VEAL

JOHN MCGINN ran riot as Aston Villa rolled back the years and took care of a wretched Nottingham Forest side with ease.

Not since the 1989-90 season under Graham Taylor have Villa been so formidable in front of their own fans and they finished second to Liverpool in that campaign.

McGinn's double - the second of which came from 35 yards - and a goal from Ollie Watkins made it 11 home wins in a row for Unai Emery's men in all competitions.

Watkins celebrated his 250th appearance with his fourth strike in three over the festive period to spearhead a victory that deepens the gloom over Forest.

It got Villa back to winning ways after their midweek 4-1 humbling at Arsenal, moving into second ahead of the rest of the weekend's Premier League action, but just as importantly opened up a 12-point gap over fifth-placed Chelsea as they tightened their grip on a Champions League spot.

Emery said: "Very important to get back to winning ways.

"The players responded fantastically to the demands we set. We needed to score one goal when we had chances.