Leeds United fought back to secure a point at the end of a thrilling game that ended 3-3. Philippe Coutinho proved too hot to handle for Marcelo Bielsa’s side as the Barcelona man who’s currently on loan here at Aston Villa dazzled with a goal and two assists. We will be talking about the match and the Villa player ratings.
Aston Villa now finds themselves at 11 in the league, a point clear of Leicester City who also has games in hand. Leeds meanwhile sit at 15th, 4 points clear of Everton while also having played 2 extra games.
Jacob Ramsey also continues his fine run of form. The Englishman has 3 goals and an assist in his last three Premier League games. Coutinho too is slowly finding his feet since his return to the Premier League.
Dan James had opened the scoring early on in the 9th minute before Villa scored 3 within 13 minutes to take the lead. James pulled one back just before half-time. The first half was a thriller as we witnessed a total of 5 goals. Diego Llorente eventually equalized just after the hour mark as Ezri Konsa was sent off with minutes to go.
ASTON VILLA PLAYER RATINGS
GOALKEEPER of Aston Villa
Emiliano Martinez: 5/10
Made an early save to deny James, but he could not stop Leeds from scoring later in the first half. Left a little bit wanting.
DEFENDERS
Matty Cash: 6/10
Had a solid first half and got the better of Jack Harrison. Cash, as usual, was strong in his challenges. Another reliable performance. He was less effective in the second half.
Ezri Konsa: 6/10
Instead of retreating and failing to make a tackle, Konsa should have blocked James’ shot. After the interval, he was booked for a reckless challenge on James and then red-carded for obstructing Illan Meslier from passing to a Leeds player. Otherwise, Konsa fared well as he was rarely troubled, with Leeds having far more success down Mings’ side.
Tyrone Mings: 3/10
Had a shaky game at the back and was partly at fault for all of Leeds’ goals. He got his feet messed up for Leeds’ opener and then misjudged his leap, letting his smaller opponent James bundle home. Perhaps he should have wiped clear for Diego Llorente’s equalizer.
Lucas Digne: 6/10
Defended admirably throughout and almost grabbed a goal when Llorente nearly bundled his corner into his net. The Frenchman was combative, and he did well to shoot across the goal as Watkins was about to score. He had a solid performance but struggled to combine with his teammates.
MIDFIELDERS
John McGinn: 7/10
McGinn played some nice aerial passes over the top to the likes of Cash and Digne. He had a few great interceptions and passes in transition in a blistering first-half. The Scotsman stuck to his task while Villa faltered in the second half.
Douglas Luiz: 5/10
Luiz was excellent in the first half as he kept composure and kept things ticking along, and largely contained Leeds’ midfield. However, the Brazilian cut a disappointing figure and was not involved a great deal in the second half as he faded away when Leeds broke quickly.
Jacob Ramsey: 9/10
The youngster delivered an ice-cool finish with his left foot for his first goal before smashing in a second from Coutinho’s excellent pass. He offered a lot of running in the middle of the park and kept plugging away in the second half, showing the same desire but with less precision to his game.
FORWARDS Of Aston Villa
Emiliano Buendia: 6.5/10
Buendia put in a gritty display and he was tenacious in winning the ball back and getting his team on the attack. He was lively in pockets of spaces but struggled with his killer passes. He worked tirelessly and did well to recover the ball back from James and then draw a foul, before being forced off with what seemed to be a hip injury.
Ollie Watkins: 6/10
Watkins was relatively quiet in the first half, with most of the Villa danger coming down the flanks, but there were a few great touches to hold the ball up and link up attacks. He was considerably better and more active after the break, winning fouls, pressing hard, and dragging his marker away with his clever movement.
Philippe Coutinho: 9.5/10
Coutinho was a bit quiet in the game’s opening exchanges but then exploded into life. He looked threatening whenever he was on the ball, swirling and dancing past Leeds players as if they were not there. Then, the little magician took the roof off Villa Park with a sublime two-touch finish to make it 1-1, before brilliantly turning provider twice for Jacob Ramsey’s bursting runs.
He also had a curling effort from range in the second half. He now has two goals and two assists in just three matches. As expected, a return to much familiar English shores is working miracles for the Brazilian.
SUBSTITUTES
Carney Chukwuemeka: 5/10
Received an early booking and could have reacted quicker while marking Llorente for the equalizer. Guilty of playing a sloppy pass to Konsa, which Rodrigo pounced on.
Ashley Young: NA/10
Did not play enough to warrant a rating.
Calum Chambers: NA/10
Did not play enough to warrant ratings as an Aston Villa player.
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