Match report: Aston Villa 2-1 Derby County
Stuart James was our man at Wembley on an afternoon when Aston Villa overcame Derby County to win back their place at English football’s top table. They were worthy winners, but were ultimately forced to fight all the way by Frank Lampard’s side, who will feel they didn’t give as good an account of themselves as they could until the final 10 minutes.
Dean Smith speaks: “It feels very good,” says Villa’s manager, in an interview with Sky Sports. “To be honest, the lads are a terrific bunch. They take on different ideas, they deserve it. I believe pressure is what you put on yourself, we work hard every day, the only difference is expectation. We’ve got two owners who have got a lot of money, and are in it for the long haul. The potential now is massive.”
He does, however, add, that he had to give his players a rollocking after a game they played at Stoke earlier this season. “We’re playing Stoke away, John McGinn was suspended and Grealish was out,” he says. “Too many heads went down and I gave them a roasting. From that moment on they’ve been brilliant. But I wouldn’t just put it down to that. We’ve got Jack back since then Tuanzebe came back. We had some great players who missed big chunks of the season.
“It somebody had told me at the end of February I’d be standing here as a Premier League manager I’d have said ‘you’re crackers’. But we made history by winning ten games on the spin.”
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Match report: Aston Villa 2-1 Derby County
Stuart James was at Wembley typing his fingers to the bone for the Guardian and sent us this report on the final whistle.
An interesting aside: While hoisting the trophy skywards, Jack Grealish managed to cut his eyebrow with the base of it. It’s a scar he won’t mind having for the rest of his life - a constant reminder of what he’s helped his club achieve today.
Oh great, another season of Prince William nagging me for a Villa ticket at Selhurst. #CPFC #AVFC
— Kevin Hunter Day (@kevinhunterday) May 27, 2019
The presentation: They walk up the Wembley steps, recieve their medals and Jack Grealish lifts the play-off trophy after helping to get the club he has supported since he was a boy back into the Premier League. Dean Smith, who was manager of Brentford at the beginning of this season before leaving for his new gig, is also Villa through and through.
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Jack Grealish speaks: “I’m speechles,” says the Aston Villa captain, in an interview with Sky Sports. “It was such a hard game going up against a great team. We knew it was hard and it would go down to the wire. Like I said in my last ten interviews when I look around and I’ve John McGinn, Tammy and Anwar [El Ghazi] I feel like we can beat anyone. I can’t describe how happy I am. I’ve scored twice against the Blues [Birmingham City] and now this. It’s like a dream.”
Tammy Abraham speaks: “Never say never,” says the striker, who is on loan from Chelsea, upon being asked if he’ll being playing in the Premier League next season. “Never say never. I’ll celebrate with the boys tonight and then we’ll see what God has planed for me.” Well, God, Maurizio Sarri or whoever else happens to be in charge at Stamford Bridge in a few weeks.
In summary: A couple of defensive blunders did for Derby County in the end. Toothless up front didn’t help either and they will rue their inability to get the ball into the Villa box before the final 10 minutes, when they had the eventual winners under siege. Anwar El-Ghazi and John McGinn got the goals that send Villa back to the Premier League, while Jack Marriott pulled one back for Derby to keep the final 10 minutes interesting.
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In the posh seats: Aston Villa fan Prince William is beside himself with delight and is caught in an emotional, wild embrace with ... er, former Villa striker John Carew.
Full-time: Aston Villa 2-1 Derby County
Peep! Peep! Peeeeeeeep! It’s all over! Aston Villa win promotion back to the Premier League, beating Derby County by the odd goal of three.
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90+6 min: An excellent passing move from Derby ends with Wilson chipping the ball into the Villa penalty area, aiming to pick out a man at the far post. Jed Steer plucks the ball from the sky and Villa’s fans cheer.
90+6 min: Villa win a free-kick for offside and are in no rush whatsoever to take it. Eventually, Jed Steer obliges.
90+4 min: Jed Steer is off his line to snatch the ball as Derby get another delivery into the Villa penalty area. This is frantic, thrilling stuff.
90+4 min: Derby win a corner. Mason Mount’s delivery is poor and Tammy Abraham clears with a thumping header at the near post.
90+2 min: Derby attack on the break. Jack Marriott sprints down the right flank at the speed of light, but overhits his cross to Florian Jozefzoon, who is up in support.
90+2 min: In the second of seven signposted minutes of added time, Harry Wilson is booked for some indiscretion or other.
90+1 min: Derby attack on the break and Harry Wilson finds himself in a yard of space in shooting range. Before he can fire off a round, Neil Taylor closes him down.
89 min: Villa win another free-kick in line with the left edge of the Derby penalty area. Rather than send a cross into the area, the play the ball wide to El-Ghazi, who takes it into the corner.
88 min: Villa get a free-kick on halfway, which they dilly-dally over taking. On the touchline, Frank Lampard is not impressed with their time-wasting tactics and makes his displeasure known to the referee.
87 min: Villa substitution: Tyrone Mings off, Kortney Hause on. Incidentally, it seems Martyn Waghorn is being credited with Jack Marriott’s fine finish, as the ball rolled over his foot on its way into the Villa goal.
84 min: Play has yet to resume, as Tyrone Mings hurt himself in the build-up to that goal. The Villa defender appears to have done himself quite a mischief as he tackled Waghorn and is helped off the pitch.
83 min: Well, well, well. Tyrone Mings had done brilliantly to stretch and tackle Waghorn as the Derby man bore down on goal. The ball made its way to Jozefzoon, the Dutch winger, who sent in a cross from the left. His cross was met by Bogle, who deftly put a header into the path of Marriott. Having taken a touch to settle himself, the substitute oassed the ball into the bottom left-hand corner. That was an excellent finish.
GOAL! Aston Villa 2-1 Derby County (Marriott 82)
Derby pull one back! Jack Marriott stabs the ball home from six yards, taking advantage of poor Villa defending.
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79 min: Derby win another corner. Another penalty area scramble ends with Villa putting the ball out for another corner. Nothing comes of this one.
77 min: Attacking on the counter, Villa advance with El-Ghazi on the ball. Jack Grealish sprints like Usain Bolt to get ahead of him into the penalty area and duly receives a pass. Instead of shooting from a tight-ish angle, he squares the ball and Bradley Johnson intercepts. Shoot, Jack! Shoot!
76 min: The ball’s sent into the penalty area and there’s a scramble as Villa are unable to clear. Jack Marriott spins and unleashes a low, rasping, diagonal drive on the turn but his effort fizzes just wide of the far post.
75 min: The game enters its final 15 minutes, unless Derby County can score two goals. They win a corner.
73 min: Derby substitution: Florian Jozefzoon on for Tom Lawrence. Aston Villa substitution: Andre Green on for Albert Adomah.
71 min: Jayden Bogle shoots into the side-netting from a narrow angle. Martyn Waghorn screams at him in a fit of rage – the substitute was unmarked on the penalty spot a few feet away if his team-mate had lifted his head and picked him out. An excellent chance for Derby to pull one back goes to waste.
70 min: Grealish picks out El-Ghazi in space on the left side of the penalty area. With a couple of team-mates to cross to, he decides to go for goal himself. His lame effort at curling the ball towards the far corner goes awry and he shoots straight at Roos.
68 min: Harry Wilson makes ground down the left flank for Derby, only to lose his footing and fall over. That, right there, is the story of Derby’s day in a nutshell. They make a substitution: Martyn Waghorn replaces Mason Bennett.
65 min: El-Ghazi goes down under a shove from Richard Keogh that sends him tumbling over the byline. A penalty? Plenty have been given for a lot less. Keogh gets away with it on this occasion.
64 min: Indeed, this Derby performance is slightly reminiscent of Villa’s in defeat against Fulham in this fixture last season. They had a woeful day at the office that afternoon, not giving a good account of themselves at all before going down to a goal conceded on the back of some seriously sloppy defending. Derby’s poor defending has cost them dearly today, but they still have time to turn things around.
61 min: Derby substitution: Tom Huddlestone off, Jack Marriott on. Frank Lampard makes a change, which was necessary. Derby have created little or nothing in the Villa half so far. Mason Bennett has barely had a kick.
60 min: Dear, oh dear. Anwar El-Ghazi cut inside from the left and took a shot, which took a massive deflection. The ball looped up in the air and was dropping to the edge of the six-yard box, where Kelle Roos had come to claim. He tried to grab it to his chest, but McGinn was more determined and on hand to beat him to the ball and head it into the gaping goal.
GOAL! Aston Villa 2-0 Derby County (McGinn 59)
Aston Villa double their lead!!! It’s a rick from Kelle Roos that’s helped them do so and John McGinn has taken full advantage.
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55 min: McGinn releases Tammy Abraham down the inside right channel with a wonderfully weighted pass. Already on a yellow card, Fikayo Timori does well to dispossess the striker with a perfectly timed tackle.
54 min: The delivery into the penalty area from Hourihane is excellent. Tyrone Mings leaps with intent, but Derby goalkeeper Kelle Roos punches the ball clear for a throw-in.
53 min: Now Bogle trips El-Ghazi as the Villa goalscorer tries to escape down the touchline. He treads on the winger’s foot, conceding a free-kick in a decent position.
50 min: Tomori fouls John McGinn but comes out the worst of the coming together. While lying on the deck injured, he gets a yellow card. The bookings are coming thick and fast.
49 min: There’s a bit of a stramash in midfield involving various players from both teams following a Tom Huddlestone foul on Jack Grealish. Referee Paul Tierney waits for it to sort itself out before summoning both captains for a word. This time the card stays in his pocket.
48 min: Now Conor Hourihane takes one for the team, stretching to foul Derby’s Harry Wilson before the Derby midfielder can get away. Yellow card.
47 min: Mason Bennett is booked for a cynical foul on Tammy Abraham. Villa’s players are unhappy with Paul Tierney for not playing the advantage, as the striker was quickly back on his feet and advancing towards the Derby penalty area.
46 min: Derby attack the Villa penalty area, but their effort comes to naught when Harry Wilson plays a deft pass to an opposition defender when trying to pick out Jayden Bogle. They’ve looked fairly bereft of ideas going forward, thus far.
Second half: Aston Villa 1-0 Derby County
46 min: Play resumes with no changes in personnel on either side.
Half-time: Aston Villa 1-0 Derby County
Villa lead at the break. It’s probably a fair reflection of the play as they’ve had the pick of what few chances there were in this first half. Derby County are famously flaky when it comes to dealing with crosses and so it proved again - having spent the entire first half sending a succession of poor deliveries from both touchlines into the Derby box, Villa finally nailed one. Elmohamedy was the provider and it was El-Ghazi who made the opportunistic run to dive and put his side ahead.
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45 min: So, Villa take the lead, after Anwar El-Ghazi makes a run and dives between two defenders to get on the end of a wonderful Elmo cross from the right touchline. It actually hit his shoulder and fizzed into the bottom left-hand corner from about six yards out.
GOAL! Aston Villa 1-0 Derby County (El-Ghazi 44)
Finally, they get a decent cross in and Anwar El-Ghazi is there to get on the end of it and score with a diving header.
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42 min: Derby’s Bradley Johnson and Villa’s Elmo are engaging in a bit of ongoing needle, which is unlikely to be help either player’s concentration on the big business in hand. Not for the first, second, third, fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh, eighth, ninth, 10th or even 11th time in this game, Villa try send a very poor cross indeed into the Derby penalty area.
41 min: Derby win a corner and Richard Keogh is left unmarked to get a clean header on the ball as it arrows into the Villa penalty area. His effort is really poor, however, and he puts the ball over the bar.
40 min: An interesting and accurate tweet from Paul Hayward, formerly of this parish.
Jack Grealish, the most talented player on either side, has played in 5 of Villa's 10 outfield positions in this first-half. Can't help feeling he should stick to No 10 so Villa's play can go through him.
— Paul Hayward (@_PaulHayward) May 27, 2019
37 min: Jack Grealish tries to play El-Ghazi in on goal with a dink from the edge of the Derby penalty area, but the winger is flagged - incorrectly - for offside. Replays show Ashley Cole was playing him on.
37 min: For Derby, Mason Mount tries a shot from 25 yards out, but fires his effort straight into the arms of Jed Steer.
35 min: El-Ghazi beats two Derby players for toe down the left wing and makes his way into the opposition penalty area, before being dispossessed by Richard Keogh.
33 min: Tammy Abraham gets a ball to feet on the edge of the Derby penalty area with his back to goal. He’s allowed to turn and advance, before trying his luck with a curler that floats high and wide of the top corner. He really should have hit the target with his first chance of the game.
32 min: We pass the half-hour mark. Lots of huffing and puffing from both teams, but neither goalkeeper has had to make a save yet. It’s entertaining fare in a not-very-good-but quite-frantic kind of way.
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31 min: Mason Bennett pulls a low cross into the Aston Villa penalty area, where Tyrone Mings intercepts and clears.
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29 min: Villa goalkeeper Jed Steer is forced to hack the ball out of play under pressure from Tom Lawrence after being sold short with a back-pass from Tyrone Mings.
27 min: El-Ghazi is booked for a tug on the shirt of Bogle and Derby have a free-kick in a dangerous position, in line with the edge of the Villa penalty area, out by the right touchline. It’s a great opportunity to get a good cross in, but Harry Wilson’s delivery is little short of diabolical and the ball sails out of play.
26 min: By contrast, Derby County’s left-back, Ashley Cole, has barely ventured into the Villa half. Then again, he is pretty much old enough to be Bogle’s dad.
24 min: A nice move from Derby comes to an end when El-Ghazi dispossesses Jayden Bogle, who has been a real handful. The right-back is playing more like a winger for Derby this afternoon.
23 min: Villa have put 10 or 11 crosses into the Derby penalty area already, but whatever about the quantity, the quality has been poor. The latest, from Albert Adomah, is wildly overhit.
19 min: Bogle and Wilson combine down the right touchline, before the Derby winger swings a cross into the penalty area from deep. Villa goalkeeper Jed Steer claims comfortably, in what might be his first touch of the game. Neither keeper has had a save to make yet.
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16 min: McGinn forces a corner for Villa against a side who are renowned for their uncertainty when it comes to dealing with crosses. Ahmed El Mohamedy (who will henceforth be known as “Elmo”) sends the ball into the mixer, where it eventually breaks for McGinn. He shoots low, hard and well wide through a thicket of legs.
13 min: Derby play a bit of keep-ball in their own half, before attacking through Jayden Bogle up the right wing. He’s dispossessed and the ball’s played forward to El-Ghazi. Having failed to track back, he’s in a good position to maraud forward up the left, but Richard Keogh is on hand to get across and stop him with a good tackle.
11 min: Jayden Bogle beats El-Ghazi down the right wing and squares the ball across the face of the Villa penalty area. Bennett dummies it, leaving it to roll to ... nobody. Perhaps he heard an imaginary shout.
10 min: Ten minutes in and Villa are having the better of the play so far. They concede a free-kick, however, for a foul on Derby striker Mason Bennett on the halfway line.
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9 min: El-Ghazi takes on Jayden Bogle on the left flank and fires in a cross. Derby midfielder Tom Huddlestone heads clear.
7 min: Following a poor clearance from Derby goalkeeper Kelle Roos that finds its way to a Villa player on halfway, Jack Grealish is picked out on the edge of the Derby penalty area. You’d back him to score, but he chooses power over precision and blasts the ball high and wide.
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5 min: Villa corner. Jack Grealish swings the ball into the penalty area, two Derby defenders make a mess of trying to clear it and it drops for Axel Tuanzebe. He takes a wild swing and misses it completely. A bit more composure from the central defender and Villa could have been one up. A chance wasted.
3 min: Jayden Bogle puts the ball out of play for VIlla throw-in deep in Villa territory, putting a stop to Anwar El-Ghazi’s gallop in the progress. It’s been a scrappy, frantic opening few minutes.
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2 min: Villa midfielder John McGinn beats Fikayo Tomori down the right wing, but is unable to take the ball past Ashley Cole. The veteran stands firm and clears the danger for Derby County.
The Championship play-off final is go ...
1 min: Aston Villa get the ball rolling, their players kitted out in their usual claret shirts with sky blue trim, white shorts and sky blue socks. Derby’s players wear white shirts, black shorts and white socks.
Not long now: Lined up in the tunnel, the teams are led out by their managers, Dean Smith and Frank Lampard. They line up either side of match referee Paul Tierney and his officials and are introduced to Debbie Jevans, the interim chief of the EFL, along with a bookie whose name I didn’t get, representing the sponsors. There’s posh.
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The managers speak
Frank Lampard: “I think we’re ready,” say the Derby boss in a pre-match chat with Sky Sports. “The push that we’ve had in the back end of the season to get here ... the performance against Leeds. It’s a test, we need to produce again. I want them to give everything, give every ounce of energy, leave everything out there. We’ve all seen what Derby can do.”
Dean Smith: “They’re as ready as they can be,” says Villa’s boss of his players. “We’ve prepared really well since the West Brom game, trained really well. We’ve got a lot of momentum and we’re as ready as we can be. This means everything; the history of the club, the fan base. Derby will be doing everything in their power to get back in the Premier League again and we have to do the same.”
With Aston Villa and Derby County facing each other in today’s Championship play-off final for promotion to the Premier League, let’s take a closer look at what has been described as the most lucrative match in world football. Some thoughts in the following thread #AVFC #DCFC
— Swiss Ramble (@SwissRamble) May 27, 2019
Aston Villa v Derby County line-ups
Aston Villa: Steer, Taylor, Tuanzebe, Elmohamady, Mings, McGinn, Grealish, Hourihane, Abraham, Adomah, El Ghazi.
Subs: Kalinic, Whelan, Jedinak, Lansbury, Kodjia, Hause, Green.
Derby County: Roos, Bogle, Keogh, Tomori, Cole, Mount, Johnson, Wilson, Huddlestone, Lawrence, Bennett.
Subs: Carson, Waghorn, Jozefoon, Marriot, Evans, McDonald, Knight.
Referee: Paul Tierney (Lancashire)
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Derby County team news: Ashley Cole starts at left-back for the Rams, as expected. Midfielder Tom Huddlestone comes into the starting line-up, in place of Duane Holmes, who isn’t in the match-day squad. Jack Marriott starts on the bench.
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Aston Villa team news: Albert Adomah starts up front alongside Tammy Abraham and Anwar El Ghazi, while Conor Hourihane gets the nod ahead of Glenn Whelan in midfield. Axel Tuanzebe starts in defence.
Some pre-match listening: Today’s edition of the Guardian’s award-winning podcast has landed and is available for your listening pleasure. Lend us your ears! And if you’re not already a subscriber, you can sign up in all the usual pod places.
Football Weekly has landed, with @maxrushden, @jonawils, @FayeCarruthers, @benfisherj, @sidlowe + @Paolo_Bandini https://t.co/hT2rCmW1T7
— Guardian sport (@guardian_sport) May 27, 2019
Wembley Way: Having had to miserably traipse the few hundred metres from the home of English football to Wembley Park tube station yesterday following Sunderland’s defeat in yesterday’s League One play-off final, your humble reporter can attest that are few more miserable perambulations in English football.
Having said that, listening to fellow supporters trying to pick the positives out of the fact that the concession of a goal with five seconds of added time left means they’ll be playing Lincoln City and Tranmere Rovers for the first time in 20 years was quite funny.
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Early Derby team news: Ashley Cole is expected to start at left-back for Derby County, in place of Scott Malone, who is suspended following his dismissal against Leeds United in the semi-final. Craig Forsyth remains sidelined with a serious knee injury – the third of his career - he suffered against Villa in November, while veteran centre-half Curtis Davies is also out.
Frank Lampard made the inspired decision to take off midfielder Duane Holmes a minute before half-time in their semi-final second leg against Leeds and replace him with Jack Marriott. Although the striker scored with his first touch and then went on to bag another, Frank Lampard seems likely to start with Holmes again today.
Early Aston Villa team news: Aston Villa defender Axel Tuanzebe is reported to have recovered from an ankle injury he suffered in the semi-final win over West Brom and should be available for selection. Manager Dean Smith will be without James, Thomas Carroll, Orjan Nyland and Jordan Lyden, who are all longterm absentees.
Smith will also have to choose between Conor Hourihane and Glenn Whelan in central midfield, while one of Andre Green, Albert Adomah and Jonathan Kodjia is likely to start on the right of their front three.
Championship play-off final: Aston Villa v Derby County
“The league just turned into a cup,” reads the branding on Wembley Way this play-off weekend and for one set of the tens of thousands of Aston Villa and Derby County fans who walk it buoyed with optimism ahead of this winner-takes-all game, the iconic walkway will represent a Boulevard of Broken Dreams on the return trip.
A place in the Premier League and the riches that come with it is up for grabs today, in a match some reports estimate to be worth around £170m to the winners over the next three years. For the losers, there is little more than despair and prospect of another season in the Championship, pondering what might have been. Kick-off is at 3pm (BST), but stay tuned for team news and build-up in the meantime.
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