The Reds secure three points at home in the Premier League with goals from Elliot Anderson, Callum Hudson-Odoi and Chris Wood.
Forest found the breakthrough after eleven minutes, Morgan Gibbs-White knocked the ball onto Elliot Anderson after receiving a throw-in from Neco Williams and Forest’s number eight strode towards the box, before firing low and past Aaron Ramsdale into the bottom corner.
Despite Southampton growing into the game, the Reds doubled their lead as Chris Wood won the ball high up the pitch off of the visitors’ defence, before Callum Hudson-Odoi collected and drove towards the area, curling emphatically past the Saints’ keeper and into the side netting.
Forest then capped off an excellent first half performance with another goal, Wood received the ball with his back to goal and tapped it off to Ola Aina on the right wing, whose floated cross was headed accurately into the bottom corner at the far post by Forest’s arriving number eleven.
HALF-TIME: Nottingham Forest 3-0 Southampton
Forest did well to assert themselves in the opening stages of the second half, Aina carving out chances for both Wood and Gibbs-White from close range, but neither could beat Ramsdale or the oncoming defenders.
However, Southampton were first to strike in the second half, Lesley Ugochuckwu’s strike from a free kick taking a deflection off of Jan Bednarek to loop over Matz Sels and wipe off the Reds’ clean sheet.
Forest then attempted to make an instant response, Anthony Elanga’s free kick being headed in by Nikola Milenković but Wood was judged to be interfering with the goal from an offside position.
As the clock ticked down, neither side had many more openings, with Forest’s efforts being blocked before they caused any danger, and Sels making an important, but simple save at close range to deny a towering header from Paul Onuachu.
As the fourth official announced twelve added minutes at the end of the second half, Onuachu scored Southampton’s second of the afternoon, rising highest from a corner to beat Sels and reduce the deficit to one.
Aina then had to make a sensational off-the-line clearance with Sels beat to deny Southampton levelling through another corner, with the Reds eventually withstanding Southampton’s relentless pressure, with Williams in particular making some brilliant interventions to run down the clock and secure the three points.
This result leaves Forest third in the Premier League, level on points with Arsenal and seven points ahead of next week’s opposition, Bournemouth.
FULL-TIME: Nottingham Forest 3-2 Southampton
Forest (4-2-3-1): Sels; Aina, Milenković, Murillo, Williams; Domínguez (Yates 83’), Anderson; Elanga (Morato 74’), Gibbs-White (Sosa 83’), Hudson-Odoi (Jota Silva 38’); Wood (Awoniyi 83’)
Unused Substitutes: Miguel, Moreno, Boly, Ward-Prowse
Goals: Anderson (11’), Hudson-Odoi (28’), Wood (41’)
Southampton (3-4-1-2): Ramsdale; Bree (Smallbone 86’), Bednarek, Harwood-Bellis; Sugawara (Manning 58’), Downes (Ugochukwu 46’), Aribo, Walker-Peters; Fernandes; Archer (Sulemana 58’), Armstrong (Onuachu 58’)
Unused Substitutes: McCarthy, Bella-Kotchap, Wood, Fraser
Bookings: Downes (33’), Walker-Peters (57’), Aribo (90+5’), Ugochukwu (90+11’)
Goals: Bednarek (60’), Onuachu (90+1’)