Aston Villa Marches On But How Far Can They Go?
From Tanko Bauka
Aston Villa started the season poorly, losing as many as six matches simultaneously, and failed to score a single goal in the process, which was a serious concern to the club and its supporters.
As they said, the rest is now history, because Aston Villa have been able to turn the tables, winning eleven matches in a row for the first time in over a hundred years of the club’s existence.
Aston Villa surpassed their previous records during the weekend encounter against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge in London, where they came from behind to inflict a painful defeat on the Enzo Maresca side.
Chelsea had earlier taken the lead through a direct corner kick in which Aston Villa goalkeeper Martinez failed to deal with and the ball went in to the delight of the home crowd but momentum shifted in favour of Aston Villa in the second half when a substitute Ollie Watkins scored two quick goals to hand over all the three points to Aston Villa.
Aston Villa now sits three points behind the league leader, Arsenal, and will face off against Arsenal on Tuesday night.
Manchester United had earlier at Old Trafford produced one of their best performances against Newcastle United, but their away form continue.
Ruben Amorim’s side piped Eddie Howe’s side 1-0 to move up to the sixth position in the league table and on 29 points, the same as Chelsea.
Liverpool, still recovering from their poor form, beat relegation-bound Wolves 2-1 at Anfield Stadium and are in the top four log in the league table, while Burnley and Everton play out a drab goalless draw.
Manchester City had earlier overhauled Arsenal at the top of the league with a 2-1 win against Nottingham Forest, but Mikel Arteta’s boys, seeking to win the league for the first time in decades, returned to the top of the league with a 2-1 win against Brighton and Hove Albion.
Fulham further compounded the woes of West Ham United which are now enmeshed in a relegation battle while Brentford demolished AFC Bournemouth 4-1 as Sunderland was held to a one-all draw and Tottenham Hotspurs piped Crystal Palace 1-0
In the Italian Serie A, AC Milan beat Hellas Verona 3-0 while Cremonese lost 2-0 to Napoli, as Bologna were held to a one-all draw by Sassuolo.
Parma beat Fiorentina 1-0 as Cagliari pip Torino 2-1 while Cesc Fabregas Como defeated Lacce 3-0 with Juventus picking up all the three points at stake against Pisa SC with a comfortable 2-0 win.
Results across Europe
English Barclays Premier League
Manchester United 1- Newcastle 0
Nothingham 1- Manchester City 2
West Ham United 0- Fulham 1
Liverpool 2- Wolves 1
Burnley 0- Everton 0
Brentford 4- AFC Bournemouth 1
Arsenal 2- Brighton Albion 1
Chelsea 1- Aston Villa 2
Sunderland 1- Leeds United 1
Crystal Palace 0- Tottenham 1
Italian Serie A
Parma 1- Fiorentina 0
Torino 1- Cagliari 2
Lacce 0- Como 3
Udinese 1- Lazio 1
Pisa SC 0- Juventus 2
AC Milan 3- Hellas Verona 0
Cremonese 0- Napoli 2
Bologna 1- Sassuolo 1
Atalanta 0- Inter Milan 1
Meanwhile, actions resumed in the league on Tuesday with a mouth-watering encounter between Arsenal and Aston Villa at the Emirates Stadium, while Sunderland welcome Manchester City, and Liverpool hosts Leeds United.
Nottingham Forest welcome Everton, Newcastle United travel to take on Burnley, and Manchester United take on Wolves.
Crystal Palace hosts Fulham at Selhurst Park Stadium as Brentford tackles Tottenham Hotspur.
Fixtures in the English Barclays Premier League
West Ham vs Brighton Albion
Nottingham Forest vs Everton
Burnley vs Newcastle United
Manchester United vs Wolves
Arsenal vs Aston Villa
Thursday
Crystal Palace vs Fulham
Liverpool vs Leeds United
Brentford vs Tottenham Hotspur
Sunderland vs Manchester City
