Barely a couple of months into his tenure as Southampton manager Nathan Jones must be wondering whether time is already running out. Saints’ sixth successive Premier League defeat – at the hands of their relegation rivals Nottingham Forest, who recorded their landmark first away win of the campaign thanks to Taiwo Awoniyi’s first-half goal – left Southampton four points adrift at the foot of the table and staring down the barrel of relegation. It was no less than Steve Cooper’s side deserved after a committed display that restricted their opponents to only a handful of opportunities on a dismal night for the home supporters. But while the victory Forest propelled out of the bottom three as they attempt to consolidate after last season’s promotion, Southampton – having spent the last decade in the top flight – can only fear the worst on this evidence as their manager left the field to chants of: “You don’t know what you’re doing.” Having admitted this week that it was time for his players to turn some of the progress Jones believes they have made since his appointment into points, this was hardly the kind of performance to convince the doubters as Southampton once again proved their own worst enemies. The mistake from Lyanco that led to Awoniyi’s winner was easily avoidable and Jones was left bemused by his side’s inability to respond. “I’m really disappointed – we gifted them a goal and didn’t show enough quality to create anything,” he said. “I can’t pre-empt what fans are going to do but they are free to express their opinions. It does surprise me a little bit but it’s their prerogative and I understand their frustrations. We have to find a way to get through this together.” It had been so long since Forest’s last visit to face Southampton in the Premier League, in August 1998, that they were still playing at the Dell in those days and the visiting supporters crammed out their stand behind Dean Henderson’s goal in the first half to make it a party atmosphere. Having also picked up a point against Chelsea and progressed to the quarter-finals of the Carabao Cup, things are suddenly looking very rosy for Cooper after a difficult start to the season. “I never thought we would concede because we were so comfortable,” said Cooper, whose side have now suffered just two defeats in their last 10 matches. “There were no elephants in the room when it came to our away form but it’s really pleasing to have ticked that box now.” On a night when Bhupinder Singh Gill made history as the first Sikh-Punjabi to serve as an assistant referee at a Premier League match, it was Southampton who should have taken the early advantage when Ché Adams raced on to an excellent pass but placed his shot horribly wide. A moment of confusion at the other end almost gifted Forest the lead when a Ryan Yates miscue fell to the unmarked Brennan Johnson 10 yards out but the Wales forward could only smack the bar with his shot. Southampton have been linked with moves for Croatia’s Mislav Orsic from Dinamo Zagreb and the Nigeria striker Terem Moffi of the French side Lorient already this month and it was easy to see why they are needed as Adams and Sékou Mara struggled to link up effectively in attack. Instead, it was Forest who looked much more likely to break the deadlock as Morgan Gibbs-White and Awoniyi both provided a threat and it was the latter who eventually did so. Lyanco took far too long and lost possession to Johnson, who raced away with the ball before providing Awoniyi with the easiest of tap-ins to record only his side’s second away goal in the Premier League this season. The away fans chirped at the hosts about how bad they must be to be losing at home to Forest. Things went from bad to worse for Southampton when the key defender Armel Bella-Kotchap limped off just before half-time and they headed down the tunnel to a chorus of boos from the disgruntled punters who had remained in their seats. When Awoniyi pinched the ball off Lyanco but fired over from distance just a couple of minutes after the restart it looked like nothing had changed at the break. Southampton’s players at least showed some desire to rectify their dire situation as they pushed Forest back into their own half and attempted to build some pressure but a series of corners came to nothing. Jones threw on three attacking substitutes in an attempt to kickstart his faltering side but they could still not find a way through the stubborn Forest defence as Awoniyi came close to embarrassing some sloppy control from James Ward-Prowse. If anything, it was the Forest replacements who seemed more intent on adding to their lead as Adam Armstrong, Samuel Edozie and Joe Aribo failed to make a real impact. Had the substitute Gustavo Scarpa been sharper then he might have marked his debut with a goal after good work from Sam Surridge down the right flank. Yet as the Forest supporters wildly celebrated their victory at the final whistle, Jones made a quick exit, having now suffered four straight defeats in the league since his appointment at the start of November.