Aston Villa secured a 2-1 win over Leicester City on Sunday with a brace from Ezri Konsa sealing all three points.
The visitors took the lead at Villa Park through Harvey Barnes early on, but Konsa drew us level before the break as he got a slight touch on an Emiliano Buendia header, which was initially given as a goal for the Argentine.
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However, Konsa doubled his tally for the evening after the interval with a well-taken header at the back post, and while both sides had their chances throughout the encounter, it was Villa who were able to hold out for the victory which moves us above the Foxes and into the top half of the Premier League table.
Aston Villa player ratings vs Leicester City:
Emiliano Martinez, 7 – Was beaten by a good finish for Leicester’s goal, but was commanding in his box and produced key saves when needed. Capped it off with a world-class, game-winning stop late on which he tipped over the bar.
Matty Cash, 7.5 – Put in another real shift for the team down that right flank. Struggled with Barnes early on but adjusted well and looked more in control. Pushed forward regularly too, although he’ll be disappointed with his crossing.
Ezri Konsa, 8.5 – A superb outing for Konsa, as not only did he play his part in keeping things tight at the back for us, but he popped up with two goals to win the game too.
Tyrone Mings, 7.5 – Had a couple of hairy moments when playing it out from the back, but produced countless clearances and interventions to cut out Leicester’s threat.
Ashley Young, 7 – Great display from the stalwart as he showed his versatility and intelligence to play left-back and produced a tidy performance.
John McGinn, 7.5 – A battling effort from the Scottish international as he put the work in off the ball and showed his vision and quality in possession too. Played in a couple of great passes to set up clear chances, but a wasteful Villa couldn’t convert.
Marvelous Nakamba, 8 – Another excellent shift in midfield, particularly in the second half. Sweeps up so well in front of the defence and snaps into tackles while playing the ball forward quickly to get us moving into attack.
Douglas Luiz, 7 – A sloppy first half as he gave away possession continuously. Similarly to the team as a whole, he improved after the break and started to influence things in the middle.
Jacob Ramsey, 7.5 – Was a key part of our pressing and pressure and popped up in dangerous areas at times. Unfortunate not to get his name on the scoresheet, as it was felt that his goal should have stood before VAR ruled it out.
Ollie Watkins, 7.5 – A tireless display from Villa’s frontman as he worked hard throughout defensively and offered good movement off the ball. Got himself into dangerous positions and had a couple of chances that he will probably feel as though he should have put away.
Emiliano Buendia, 7 – The Argentine ace is getting better week to week and offering us more in the final third. Caught the eye with some nice pieces of skill and his influence in our build-up play is growing.
Substitutions:
Carney Chukwuemeka, 6 – A composed and tidy contribution off the bench as he kept the ball well in the latter stages to relieve some pressure and get us moving on the counter attack.
Morgan Sanson, 6 – Similarly to Chukwuemeka, came on and added some composure to our play to help control the tempo of the game as Leicester pushed for an equaliser.
Axel Tuanzebe, N/A