Emi Martinez heroic, but 4/10 teammate has shocker – Aston Villa ratings vs Bournemouth
Aston Villa held on for a 1-1 draw at Bournemouth to dent their Premier League title hopes.
Villa aimed to return to winning ways following their 1-0 loss to Brentford on 1 February at Villa Park when they visited Bournemouth on Saturday.
Despite picking up a hamstring complaint against Red Bull Salzburg, Villa striker Ollie Watkins made the starting lineup for the Vitality Stadium clash.
Unai Emery’s side came into the contest as favourites but were second best for the majority of the encounter on the south coast.
Despite taking the lead, Villa were unable to pick up a much-needed three points as Premier League leaders Arsenal extended the gap to the West Midlands outfit to a hefty nine points.
Emi Martinez to the rescue for Aston Villa, Morgan Rogers shows his class
Against the run of play, Villa took the lead through England international Morgan Rogers, who emphatically thumped the ball past Djordje Petrovic in the Bournemouth goal in the 22nd minute following neat interplay from Jadon Sancho.
Villa have a raft of injury issues, and it showed as they didn’t create much but went into the break with a slender 1-0 lead, as Andoni Iraola looked frustrated heading down the tunnel.
But 19-year-old Bournemouth starlet Rayan scored a deserved equaliser in the 55th minute to make it 1-1 to send the home fans wild.
When the whistle finally blew, Villa had created an Expected Goals tally of just 0.44 to Bournemouth’s 2.08.
The hosts had 20 shots to Villa’s nine, with the visitors indebted to goalkeeper Martinez showing the kind of form that won him the Yashin Trophy on two occasions.
| Djorde Petrovic | Emi Martinez |
| WhoScored rating: 6.9 | 7.5 |
| Saves made: 3 | 7 |
| Aerials won: 0 | 1 |
| Claims: 0 | 2 |
Indeed, he certainly outshone his opposite number Petrovic as he repeatedly got his side out of trouble. Without him, this game could have been quite one-sided.
Lucas Digne lets down his Aston Villa teammates
As far as first Premier League goals go, Rayan’s was one to remember. He showed great pace and a clinical finish to draw Bournemouth level.
But the manner of the goal left many football fans shaking their heads. Digne was beaten far too easily to the point where it looked like he wasn’t even trying.
The 32-year-old former Everton man has developed a reputation of being a very competent defender at Premier League level over the years.
But this defending was comically bad. When footage of what he did, or didn’t do, surfaced on social media, Digne was lambasted from pillar to post.
The result saw Villa slip further behind top of the table Arsenal, who thumped Sunderland 3-0 at Emirates Stadium on Saturday.
If City beat Liverpool at Anfield on Sunday, Pep Guardiola’s men could go three points clear of Emery’s side.
Aston Villa player ratings vs Bournemouth
Emi Martinez – 8
Matty Cash – 6
Ezri Konsa – 7
Tyrone Mings – 6
Lucas Digne – 4
Douglas Luiz – 7
Amadou Onana – 7
Jadon Sancho – 7
Morgan Rogers – 8
Emi Buendia – 6
Ollie Watkins – 6
Substitutes:
Leon Bailey – 6
Ian Maatsen – 6
Ross Barkley – 6
Tammy Abraham – 6
Lamare Bogarde – 6