DailySun
UNAI EMERY’S Villa averted a holiday disaster by overcoming Brentford, thereby snapping their eight-match winless streak.
Emery has never experienced a nine-match winless period during his long managerial career, which spans over 1,000 games.
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By the time the referee blew for half-time, Emery was aware that his unfortunate streak had concluded, earning three vital points as the Bees faltered.
Brentford has been a strong force at home, securing 19 of their 20 points this season at their venue.
Despite this, Thomas Frank’s squad frequently encounters challenges in away matches!
They found themselves down 3-0 by halftime as Villa produced an impressive display, revitalizing their inconsistent season.
Blonde dynamo Morgan Rogers, showcasing a trendy new platinum hairstyle, opened the scoring with an exquisite strike midway into the first half.
The England midfielder received a pass from Boubacar Kamara, surged forward, exchanged plays with Ollie Watkins, and expertly curled a shot into the net from the edge of the box.
This impressive start was reflective of Villa’s desire for victory as they exploited Brentford’s vulnerable defense.
Ollie Watkins remained a persistent threat, creating significant problems for the Bees throughout the game.
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Just before the 30-minute mark, he raced onto a pass from Leon Bailey and managed to sidestep Ethan Pinnock, who slightly clipped the striker’s heel, resulting in a fall.
Referee Lewis Smith pondered for a moment before awarding a penalty, a decision later confirmed by VAR.
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Watkins gathered himself and smoothly converted the penalty. Although Flekken got a touch, he couldn’t prevent Ollie from netting in his fifth straight match against his former club.
Matty Cash compounded Brentford’s difficulties by scoring a third goal, taking advantage of Pinnock’s deflected header to execute a spectacular volley past Flekken.
Brentford claimed that Watkins was offside and interfered with play, which led to Pinnock stretching for the clearance.
However, VAR official Nick Hopton upheld the referee’s initial judgment, resulting in a grim first half for Frank’s side.
Villa nearly extended their lead when Flekken mishandled a corner from Youri Tielemans, sending it high in the air and needing to recover quickly to stop it from crossing the line.
He redeemed himself with an impressive diving stop, preventing Watkins’ header from finding the back of the net.
A faint sign of hope for Brentford emerged when Mikkel Damsgaard seized on a half-clearance from Matty Cash, navigated past Kamara, and struck high into the roof of Emi Martinez‘s net.
Despite Brentford’s efforts for more, it was undeniably Villa’s night.
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