Written by Reece Heaton
Sub-edited by Samuel Brady
There was a dramatic end to the game at Villa park on Saturday afternoon as Brighton took all three points as they secured a 2 – 1 victory to give them their second win of the season and condemn Villa to a third defeat in a row at Villa Park, here are the player ratings for the game.
Embed from Getty ImagesASTON VILLA
Emiliano Martinez – 6
At times reacted really well to get off his line quick and block any Brighton attempts when they were put through on goal, couldn’t do anything to stop the Brighton goals.
Matty Cash – 5
Looked dangerous going forward for Aston Villa and made great runs to get in behind Brighton’s full backs to produce cut backs to Ollie Watkins which were cleared, but he allowed Solly March to get in front of him to score Brighton’s second goal.
Ezri Konsa – 6
Scored Villa’s equaliser in the second half after latching onto Traore’s free- kick, but dealt with Brighton’s second goal poorly as he stood and watched March curl the ball into the top right, a 6 for Konsa.
Tyrone Mings – 5
Let Welbeck get in behind him for the first goal and had an attempt that was cleared off the line in the first half. Booted the ball out of play unnecessarily in the second half for a Brighton goal, an average game from Mings.
Matt Targett – 4
Struggled to keep up with the pace of Tariq Lamptey during the game and was booked early in the first half, not much of an impact made.
Douglas Luiz – 5
Had two attempts in the second half which were comfortably dealt with, was running the midfield well in the first half. Like Targett, didn’t make much of an impact in the game.
John McGinn – 4
Not the greatest game for John McGinn, wasn’t up to the tempo of the game with some sloppy passes, wasn’t a good game for the Scotsman
Embed from Getty ImagesTrezeguet – 6
Trezeguet could have scored a hat trick, so many chances fell to his feet but he failed to convert on so many occasions, I think a six is fair enough as he got himself into great positions to have those attempts, but poor finishing let the Egyptian down.
Ross Barkley – N/A
Ross Barkley only lasted a minute on the pitch as he had to be withdrawn early for what looked like a hamstring injury.
Jack Grealish – 7
It was a tough afternoon for Jack Grealish, he created so many chances for his side in the first half and was unplayable at times, Grealish didn’t have the midfield support of Ross Barkley during the game which definitely showed in the second half display, as Grealish, was getting really sloppy with the ball in the late stages.
Embed from Getty ImagesOllie Watkins – 5
Got into some dangerous positions in the box but failed to really get any attempts on goal, nearly scored if it wasn’t for Ben White’s last minute interception.
SUBSTITUTES
Bertrand Traore – 6
Came on as replacement for Ross Barkley and played fairly well, put in some dangerous set pieces and assisted for the Villa goal, a good performance from Traore who probably wasn’t expecting to be on the pitch so quickly.
Conor Hourihane – 5
Tried to help push forward for an equaliser in the last fifteen minutes, but it wasn’t enough.
Anwar El Ghazi – 5
Made some dangerous runs in the latter stages but didn’t get enough time to make an impact on the game.
BRIGHTON & HOVE ALBION
Matt Ryan – 7
Matt Ryan made a great save from Jack Grealish’s curling shot in the first half and pushed away Traore’s effort onto the post. Couldn’t really do anything for Villa’s goal but apart from that, it was a good goalkeeping performance from the Aussie.
Tariq Lamptey – 7
Was sent off in the final stages after a second booking, though throughout the game, he looked extremely dangerous with his blistering pace on the right hand side, some great cut backs into the box to help create chances for his team.
Ben White – 7
Made a crucial interception to prevent Ollie Watkins from scoring in the first half, moved into the midfield in the second half in replacement of Adam Lallana and played well.
Adam Webster – 6
Likewise with Ben White, put in a good defensive performance but fluffed a clearance in the second half which could have nearly led to a Villa goal.
Embed from Getty ImagesLewis Dunk – 7
Returned from a three match ban and came back into the side with an overall solid performance, but another set piece conceded is something for concern.
Solly March – 8
An absolute belter of a goal in the second half topped off a great performance for Solly March. His performance was nearly tainted when his challenge on Trezeguet gave Villa a penalty in stoppage time, but luckily was disallowed by the referee following a VAR review.
Pascal Gross – 7
Set up Solly March for the second goal after switching the play from the right to the left very impressively, wasn’t afraid to get forward and get into attacking positions, a good game from the German.
Yves Bissouma – 9 (Man Of The Match)
Outstanding performance from Yves Bissouma, here are the stats of the midfielder during the game, a brilliant display and well deserving of the man of the match.
Adam Lallana – 6
Had to be withdrawn at half time as a precaution, but overall had a good first half, got himself into a good position to have an attempt which went wide of goal, linked up really well with the attackers.
Neil Maupay – 7
His link-up play with Welbeck in the game was brilliant, but should have scored in the second half when he was in a lot of space in the box and headed off target, not a bad game from Maupay overall.
Danny Welbeck – 8
Grabbed his first goal for his new club and took the goal brilliantly by dinking it over Emiliano Martinez, had some attempts which were blocked and overall had a great game.
SUBSTITUTES
Joel Veltman – 6
Came on for Lallana at half time and put in a decent shift, made some good interceptions from Villa’s sloppy passes.
Dan Burn – 5
Came on in order to help see out the game for Brighton, in which he did.
Jayson Molumby – N/A
Molumby only came on for the last minute.
