Paul Doyle was at Villa Park, which means the match report will be worth reading. I’ll leave you with that - goodnight!
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#AVFC are ripping #EFC apart! 🦁
— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) September 18, 2021
Leon Bailey announces himself at Villa Park with a thumping strike to make it 3-0! 💥 pic.twitter.com/mKthXwljfr
Full time: Aston Villa 3-0 Everton
Peep peep! Aston Villa move into the top half of the table with a rousing victory over Everton. A tight game came alive when Leon Bailey was introduced after an hour. He was only on the field for 21 minutes before going off with a thigh injury, but in that time he forced an own goal from Lucas Digne and smashed Villa’s third. The first goal was another cracker, lashed into the roof of the net by Matty Cash. It looks like there really is life after Jack Grealish.
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90 min Three minutes of added time.
87 min It’s been a disappointing night for Everton, though we shouldn’t forget that they are without four key players. And there was nothing in the game for the first hour.
86 min Villa make another change: the limping Matty Cash, who scored a cracking first goal, is replaced by Bertrand Traore.
85 min Keane misses a terrific chance for Everton, heading Digne’s free-kick wide from 12 yards.
81 min Villa are taking no chances with Bailey, who is going to be replaced by Ashley Young. He gets a really warm hand from the Villa fans after an exhilarating 20-minute cameo.
80 min While Bailey receives treatment, Jonjoe Kenny and Tom Davies replace Ben Godfrey and Alex Iwobi.
80 min Bailey has gone down and is holding his left thigh. Ach, I really hope this isn’t a muscle injury.
79 min A snapshot from Andre Gomes takes a couple of deflections and is cleared.
78 min Dean Smith could be excused for being extremely smug right now. The game was going nowhere when he brought Bailey on for Matt Targett after an hour, since when Villa have been rampant.
77 min Bailey was booked for taking his shirt off when he scored. He had a T-shirt underneath with a message on, though I didn’t see what it said.
What an emphatic finish from Bailey. Ings turned smartly in his own half and wafted a long, crossfield pass with the outside of the right foot. Bailey nodded the ball into the area, waited for it to bounce a few times and then blistered it into the roof of the net.
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GOAL! Aston Villa 3-0 Everton (Bailey 75)
That goal definitely belongs to Leon Bailey!
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73 min Douglas Luiz whips a free-kick onto the roof of the net from a very tight angle. He should have crossed it, but what the hell.
72 min Godfrey is booked for a foul on Bailey. Meanwhile, Anthony Gordon comes on to replace Allan for Everton.
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70 min Ramsey almost makes it 3-0, curling just wide from the edge of the area. He had a better option, Ings I think, but in this atmosphere you can understanding him getting carried away.
Bailey curled a wicked inswinging corner to the near post. It brushed the head of the leaping Digne and flashed past Begovic.
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GOAL! Aston Villa 2-0 Everton (Digne own goal 69)
And now it’s two!
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68 min There must have been barely 30 seconds between Gray’s chance and Cash’s goal.
That was a lovely finish from Cash, who has a big dumb grin all over his face. Douglas Luiz played a good first-time pass inside Digne, who lost concentration for a split-second and was punished. Cash got goalside of him, controlled Luiz’s pass on the run and rifled it over Begovic with his left foot.
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GOAL! Aston Villa 1-0 Everton (Cash 66)
Matty Cash scores his first goal for Villa!
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65 min: Just wide from Gray! Townsend surges to the edge of the area and plays a good square pass to Gray. He uses a defender as a screen and curls a right-footed shot that flashes wide of the far post.
63 min And now a change for Everton: Andre Gomes replaces Salomon Rondon, which should mean a switch to 4-3-3. Gray has moved to the left and Iwobi will play as a false nine.
62 min “What a strange match,” says Mary Waltz. “Both teams are going for it and neither team looks like they will score.”
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61 min A change for Villa: the exciting Leon Bailey replaces Matt Targett, which means a switch to a back four.
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59 min This is a good spell for Everton. Gray slides a clever pass into the area for Iwobi, whose poked shot on the run is saved to his left by Martinez. It was going wide anyway.
56 min Mings is penalised for a high boot, which gives Everton a free-kick 30 yards from goal. Townsend cracks it into the wall.
54 min Gray rolls Konsa cleverly on the edge of the D and is pulled back. The referee Craig Pawson doesn’t agree and waves play on. I don’t think it would have been a red-card offence, as Tuanzebe was covering, but it should certainly have been a free-kick and a yellow card.
53 min Targett’s deep cross is headed back across goal by Watkins towards Ings, but Mina dives in front of him to head clear. That was a vital piece of defending.
49 min Ramsey, who has made a bright start to the second half, plays a give-and-go with Watkins and moves into the area. His cross is blocked by Godfrey.
46 min Peep peep! Everton begin the second half.
“I am still utterly baffled as to what Alex Iwobi is,” says Stephen Carr. “I don’t know what position he plays, how long he’s been playing, what he does. He’s just there....”
Half-time reading
Half time: Aston Villa 0-0 Everton
Peep peep! Lots of endeavour but not too many chances. Asmir Begovic made a brilliant reaction save from Tyrone Mings’ header and John McGinn was belatedly substituted with concussion. Demarai Gray and Andros Townsend were bright for Everton. Villa were very dangerous from set-pieces but could do with a little more wit in open play.
45+1 min Allan’s clever angled pass just evades Townsend, who made a brilliant run across Targett and would have been through had he been able to control the ball on the stretch.
45 min Two added minutes.
44 min Townsend wanders from right to left before reversing a decent long-range shot that is nonchalantly absorbed in the breadbasket by Martinez.
41 min Douglas Luiz is fouled 30 yards from goal by Doucoure. Targett’s clipped free-kick bounces dangerously in the six-yard box before an Everton defender boots the ball clear.
39 min John McGinn is going off with concussion; Marvelous Nakamba replaces him. I suppose there will be questions about why McGinn continued playing after he was first treated, but I’m no medical professional so I can’t really comment.
37 min Gray works a short corner on the left with Townsend and whips a superb cross towards Mina at the far post. Targett, facing his own goal in the six-yard box, does brilliantly to get in front of Mina and head the ball to safety.
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36 min Everton have had more of the ball in the last 10-15 minutes. It’s still a bitty game but at the moment they are slightly on top.
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34 min A long ball forward breaks for McGinn, whose shot from the edge of the D is blocked by Keane. The ball rebounds to Cash, who drags a low shot wide of the near post.
30 min Digne’s deep, hanging cross is headed away bravely by Mings, who knew he was about to be clattered by Godfrey.
28 min Mina makes an important tackle on Watkins in the area. His clearance goes as far as McGinn, 25 yards out, and he curls a few yards wide.
24 min Nothing has happened in the last few minutes, though the game is still being played at a decent pace. The first goal feels important, for a change.
22 min McGinn is fine.
19 min There’s a break in play while John McGinn receives treatment. I’m not sure what happened but the physio is poking and prodding around his left eye.
17 min A dangerous cutback from Ings evades everyone and Everton are off on the break. Gray surges 50 yards, all the way into the Villa area before sliding a low cross that is just too far in front of the lunging Rondon at the far post.
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16 min Digne’s cross is headed behind by Mings. Both teams look dangerous from set-pieces. Townsend curls this one towards the far post, where Keane backpedals away from Tuanzebe and plants a downward header just wide. Martinez had it covered.
15 min An elaborate training-ground free-kick from Villa almost leads to a goal. Eventually Konsa heads the ball back across the area to Mings, who cushions a header down towards Ings. He flicks a first-time volley with the outside of the right foot that drifts just wide of the far post.
12 min On a serious note, Everton have had plenty of white change strips over the years, including this jaunty little conversation-starter.
10 min “I understand that new away kits have to be developed each year to drive sales,” ssays Mary Waltz. “But shouldn’t they have some connection to the team’s colors? A cranky old person rant.”
I wouldn’t necessarily call it a rant.
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7 min That was a seriously good save from Begovic, with almost no reaction time once Mings flicked the header towards goal. He needed a strong wrist as well, as it would have been easy to palm the ball into the roof of the net as he fell backwards.
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6 min: Great save from Begovic! Now Villa win their first corner. Douglas Luiz curls it at pace towards the near post, where Mings flicks a good header towards goal. Begovic makes a spectacular reaction save, reaching to his right to palm the ball up in the air, and Keane holds off McGinn to head the loose ball behind for another corner.
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5 min The resulting corner, taken by Townsend, is headed over by Rondon ahead of the near post. A half chance at best.
4 min Rondon almost scores within four minutes of his full debut! He received Godfrey’s low cross at the near post, pushing it around Tuanzebe with his first touch, and was about to shoot when Tuanzebe stuck out a leg to poke the ball behind for a corner.
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2 min Everton are in their new third strip, which I suspect - no euphemism - is a bit of a grower. I already like it a lot more than I did when I first saw it half an hour ago.
1 min Peep peep! Villa kick off from left to right. It looks like a back four for Everton, with Iwobi on the left and Gray behind Rondon.
The Everton players stroll onto the field, followed by the Villa team. It’s time for business.
Here’s Jamie Jackson’s report on an eventful goalless draw at the Etihad
Rafa Benitez confirms Richarlison’s knee-knack is a result of that Tarkowski tackle. He doesn’t say how long he might be out for, though the lads on Twitter reckon it’ll be a few weeks.
Sky are also suggesting Everton will play 4-2-3-1, with Demarai Gray as the No10. We’ll soon find out.
The Premier League results so far
- Wolves 0-2 Brentford
- Liverpool 3-0 Crystal Palace
- Manchester City 0(NIL)-0 Southampton
- Norwich 1-3 Watford
- Burnley 0-1 Arsenal
“I can’t really make out what formation Everton will deploy today,” says Matt Burtz. “Iwobi isn’t a natural wing-back but filled that role capably against Huddersfield in the League Cup. Richarlison’s absence is notable, but with leading goalscorer Demarai Gray in the lineup, hopefully he can plug that gap. I look forward to seeing Salomon Rondon’s first start, and should fresh scoring legs be needed off the bench, perhaps 20-year-old Ellis Simms’ first appearance is in the cards? This will be a tough one today.”
The club’s Twitter feed suggests 4-2-3-1, though I’ve noticed a growing trend for tactical misinformation on official club feeds when posting team news. Marginal gains.
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🤕 | Richarlison misses #AVLEVE with a knee problem while Jordan Pickford has a shoulder injury and Seamus Coleman had a problem in training yesterday. pic.twitter.com/Tmb2u0BUCz
— Everton (@Everton) September 18, 2021
There’s a bit of speculation that Richarlison is out because of that tackle by James Tarkowski on Monday night. I’m sure we’ll find out after the game.
🗣️ "It was a mirror image of the tackle on Harvey Elliott"@GNev2 reflects on some refereeing decisions during #MNF pic.twitter.com/IzfWZXhbWf
— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) September 13, 2021
The future’s yours but the past was mine
There was only one live game a week in 1989, so this was a huge deal - the day Villa bulldozed their way into the title race and David Platt became a household name.
Pre-match reading
VAR latest
Team news
Villa make one change from the team that was eventually well beaten at Stamford Bridge last weekend, with Emi Martinez replacing Jed Steer in goal.
There are three enforced changes for Everton, who beat Burnley 3-1 on Monday night. Jordan Pickford, Seamus Coleman and Richarlison are all unavailable; Asmir Begovic, Alex Iwobi and Salomon Rondon start, Rondon for the first time since joining the club. Everton only have eight players on the bench.
Aston Villa (3-5-2) Martinez; Konsa, Tuanzebe, Mings; Cash, McGinn, Douglas Luiz, Ramsey, Targett; Ings, Watkins.
Substitutes: Steer, Hause, Young, Nakamba, Buendia, El Ghazi, Bailey, Traore, Archer.
Everton (possible 4-2-3-1) Begovic; Godfrey, Mina, Keane, Digne; Doucoure, Allan; Townsend, Gray, Iwobi; Rondon.
Substitutes: Lonergan, Kenny, Holgate, Gomes, Gordon, Davies, Branthwaite, Simms.
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Preamble
Hello and welcome to live coverage of the oldest fixture in town. Aston Villa v Everton has been played more than any other game in English football, going back to 1888, and this is their 207th league meeting. That reflects their status as two of England’s grandest clubs; indeed, only Manchester United, Liverpool and Arsenal have won more titles.
Love that stat while you can, because it’s likely to turn cold and stiff in the next few years. Villa and Everton trapped below the glass ceiling for most of the Premier League era, but they are at least moving in the right direction. Dean Smith needed only two years to take Villa from mid-table in the Championship to mid-table in the Premier League, and has since spent the Jack Grealish money wisely, while Everton have started attracting Champions League-winning managers.
They looked good at times under Carlo Ancelotti, and his replacement Rafa Benitez has had a near perfect start. A win today would put them joint top of the Premier League with Liverpool*.
Kick off 5.30pm.
* Assuming Liverpool beat Crystal Palace. They are 1-0 up with 15 minutes left.
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