John Townley’s Aston Villa player ratings after Unai Emery’s side beat Leeds United 2-1 in the Premier League
Morgan Rogers scored both of Aston Villa’s goals against Leeds United(Image: SmartFrame/News Images)
Aston Villa moved into the Premier League’s top four after coming from behind to beat Leeds United 2-1 at Elland Road.
The hosts opened the scoring in the eighth minute with a goal Villa will feel was both poor and avoidable. But Morgan Rogers levelled the game shortly after the second-half restart, before the England international sealed the comeback with a stunning free-kick 15 minutes from time.
Leeds broke the deadlock early on when Sean Longstaff whipped the ball towards the back post, where Gabriel Gudmundsson kept it alive. Emi Martinez was then beaten to the ball in the air by Anton Stach. Ezri Konsa’s clearance on the line rebounded straight back off him and over as Lukas Nmecha’s block diverted the ball in.
Moments earlier, Matty Cash had recovered well to prevent Noah Okafor’s progress in the box, but Villa had few such defensive moments after falling behind, with Leeds absorbing pressure effectively and keeping the visitors on the back foot.
Villa’s first opening came in the 27th minute when Cash crossed for Ollie Watkins, but the striker’s header was deflected wide by Joe Rodon – though no corner was awarded.
Ten minutes before the break – six of which were added as stoppage time – Martinez got down well to block Brendan Aaronson’s effort from the edge of the box, before strikes from Cash and Watkins both drifted wide at the other end.
At half-time, Unai Emery turned to Donyell Malen and Ian Maatsen to add pace and poise to Villa’s play, with Lucas Digne and Emi Buendia making way.
Leeds came into the game winless in their previous five Premier League meetings with Villa, dating back to a 3–0 away victory in October 2020. Villa, meanwhile, had lost only one of their last 11 top-flight away fixtures at Elland Road.
Malen made an instant impact by setting up Rogers’ equaliser. The Dutchman fired a low ball across goal, and Rogers applied an effective touch at the near post.
At the other end, Konsa made a superb block to prevent Aaronson’s shot from troubling Martinez, before Leeds goalkeeper Perri was called into action by Watkins, who cut inside and fired at goal.
After Leeds overplayed at the back and Ross Barkley was fouled just outside the box, Rogers stepped up to fire a free-kick over the wall and beyond the helpless Perri to put Villa ahead.
Leeds briefly thought they had restored parity moments later when Dan James raced through and squared the ball for Dominic Calvert-Lewin to turn past Martinez. However, replays clearly showed the former Everton striker had handled the ball over the line, and VAR ruled the goal out.
Player ratings
Emi Martinez
Martinez lost out when trying to claim a high ball dropping from a free-kick after the first contact. Having failed to gather it, Konsa’s clearance then rebounded off Nmecha and over the line. Villa’s goalkeeper did make a smart save to deny Aaronson later in the first half and then again late on to prevent Pascal Struijk heading in from close range. 6
Matty Cash In the seventh minute, Cash recovered well to deny Okafor space in the box, lunging in at the winger. He also created Villa’s first chance of the game with a cross to Watkins. Another strong display from the right-back. 7
Ezri Konsa Konsa’s clearance rebounded into the net off Nmecha from close range, but the defender responded well, making a brilliant tackle on Aaronson shortly after Villa equalised. He also stood strong as Leeds applied pressure late on. 7
Pau Torres Torres’ passing range was uncharacteristically poor at times, though he helped steady Villa toward the end of the first half. 6
Lucas Digne Digne was replaced at half-time as Emery clearly wanted more pace in the side for the second half. 6
Boubacar Kamara Kamara lost the ball to Gudmundsson in the 34th minute, allowing the full-back to race forward and cross into the penalty area. Like most of his teammates, he didn’t have a great first half but improved after the break, playing more like himself. Ended the game winning the most duels and created two chances as well. 7
Youri Tielemans Tielemans returned to the starting XI after Amadou Onana failed a late fitness test on Saturday. He looked forward at every opportunity, though not everything came off. Got stuck in, winning seven of the 10 ground duels he contested. 7
John McGinn McGinn came close to scoring Villa’s second of the game when he bent a shot towards the top corner from outside the box. Aside from that, the Scot wasn’t heavily involved going forward and was mostly engaged in battles against Gudmundsson. 6
Emi Buendia Buendia started the game but was taken off at half-time. He took a free-kick from a similar position to one he scored from against Bournemouth before the international break, but this one went astray. 6
Morgan Rogers Rogers’ deft flick at the near post put Villa level early in the second half, before he then scored a stunning free-kick to complete the turnaround. He combined well in the final third and impressed throughout. 9*
Ollie Watkins Watkins had a few opportunities, including a header and two shots on goal, but remains without a goal in this match. He has scored just four times in his last 31 matches for the club. He was more lively and involved than in previous games. 6
SUBS
Ian Maatsen (for Digne, 46’): Maatsen saw his drive from the edge of the box blocked in the 57th minute; it might well have been on target for the far post. 6
Donyell Malen (for Buendia, 46’): Malen made an instant impact by assisting Rogers’ equaliser. He could earn more minutes in upcoming matches. 7
Jadon Sancho (for Watkins, 68’): Sancho played on the left and retained possession well for the most part. 6
Ross Barkley (for McGinn, 68’): Barkley was tidy after coming on and won the free-kick from which Rogers scored. 7
Lamare Bogarde (for Tielemans, 84’): N/A
Subs not used: Bizot, Lindelof, Hemmings, Guessand.
GOALS
Leeds: Nmecha (8′)
Villa: Rogers (48′, 75′)
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