Aston Villa secured a dramatic 2-1 win over Leicester City on Tuesday night, with Bertrand Traore scoring a stunning late winning goal at the King Power Stadium.
Ollie Watkins had broken the deadlock in the first half to give us the lead, but Harvey Barnes cancelled that out before the break as the home side were a threat in the opening 45 minutes.
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However, barring an early spell after the break, and particularly after their red card, Villa began to gain more control and dominate possession, and were eventually rewarded through a brilliant individual goal from Traore.
Pouncing on a poor pass on the edge of Leicester’s box, the Burkina Faso international curled a sumptuous first-time strike over the goalkeeper and into the back of the net to spark jubilant scenes in the away end, as Villa climb to seventh in the Premier League after a fifth win in our last six outings.
Aston Villa player ratings vs Leicester:
Emi Martinez, 7 – Little he could have done for the goal as it was a top finish, but he produced a couple of crucial interventions during the course of the game to keep us ahead, and his distribution was on point for the most part to help beat the initial Leicester press.
Ashley Young, 6 – Tough night for him up against Barnes. Was caught out for the goal and found it difficult to keep him quiet. That said, he did improve in the second half as the Leicester man’s influence waned, while Young became an attacking presence too.
Ezri Konsa, 7 – Another solid shift as he was composed and accurate in possession and stepped in to defend diligently when needed. Continuing his impressive form and playing a pivotal role at the back as part of a solid defensive unit.
Tyrone Mings, 7 – Similar story to his centre-half partner, as he was physical and dominate in duels and was a crucial presence at the back for us to keep things tight and organised.
Alex Moreno, 7.5 – Consistently provided width and an attacking outlet down the left flank. While he couldn’t find the decisive contribution in the final third, he saw an effort clip the post and linked up well with our attacking players to provide an important dynamic to our play.
Leon Bailey, 5 – Struggled to contribute anything of note again as he looks like he’s lacking confidence and belief. Couldn’t beat his man and was sloppy in possession. Showed glimpses of quality, but all too rare and his replacement ended up scoring the winning goal which will put more pressure on him to stay in the side.
John McGinn, 7 – Tenacious and combative in the midfield battle, while also showing technical quality and composure to keep us ticking in possession. Continues to play a fundamental role for us regardless of position or role having been shifted back inside more centrally for this one.
Douglas Luiz, 7 – Similar to McGinn in terms of tidiness in possession and ability to dictate tempo and maintain control of the game, with Villa enjoying long periods on the ball and his calmness and organisation was vital. Played a nice ball into Buendia in the build-up to our first goal, as he continued to break the lines with his accurate, crisp passing.
Jacob Ramsey, 7 – Will be disappointed that he didn’t get on the scoresheet as he had one big chance in particular, but he put in another important shift for the team and showed good intent at times too with his driving runs into dangerous areas.
Emiliano Buendia, 7.5 – Continues to provide creativity, movement and flair in the final third, and finally registered his first Premier League assist of the season with a super ball into Watkins to set him on his way for his goal. Will want to be more consistent over 90 minutes with his influence on proceedings, but an important contribution.
Ollie Watkins, 8 – Six in six on the road for Watkins, as he continues his superb recent form. Showed great strength and composure to bag his goal, and played a key role throughout with his movement, pressing and ability to keep the Leicester defence on their toes.
Substitutes:
Jhon Duran, 5.5 – Added a physical and aerial presence in the latter stages to give us another option in our search for a winner.
Calum Chambers, N/A
Lucas Digne, N/A
Bertrand Traore, 8 – What a finish. Pounced on the error from Ndidi and produced a sensational first-time curling strike from distance to win it. A perfect impact off the bench.