Anwar El Ghazi steps up to secure a vital away win as Aston Villa edge Wolves at the Molineux

In a game full of bookings, Aston Villa edged Wolves in a game that saw both teams down to ten-men but El-Ghazi’s penalty was enough to secure Villa the three points.

Dean Smith’s side made it four wins on the road so far this season, having only played a total of ten games in the league which allowed them to move up to eighth and one point above their hosts in this fixture.

Douglas Luiz was sent off after he elbowed Daniel Podence in the face. With the Brazilian already on a yellow card left Mike Dean with no choice but to give him his marching orders with five minutes to go.

When asked about the team’s excellent form away from home, Aston Villa manager Dean Smith commented:

“Four clean sheets out the five, it’s been excellent form for us. We know we can compete”

Anwar El Ghazi has spent a lot of time amongst the subs bench for Villa this season but a goal against Wolves will give the Dutchman a confidence boost heading into the festive period, with a lacklustre performance from Bertrand Traore, a Premier League start is on the cards for the winger.

Emiliano Martinez, the winner of the Man of the Match award, brings Villa up to five clean sheets for the season compared to last season in which they only kept seven. Martinez provided a number of important stops to keep his team in the game, the Argentine stopped Leander Dendoncker at bay from close range with 15 minutes to go.

However, for Wolves, it was a game in which they’ll rue their missed chances. Whilst also trying out a new formation, which saw the side move from three at the back to four and Willy Bolly dropping to the bench for the first time this season.

There are still plenty of positives for Nuno Espirito Santo to take from their last-minute defeat, with Daniel Podence providing a real attacking threat going forward and a tricky Pedro Neto on the flank, Wolves will look to bounce back as they host Frank Lampard’s Chelsea on Tuesday night.

It was also a Premier League debut for local boy, Jacob Ramsey, an academy graduate for Aston Villa. Ramsey came in for Conor Hourihane who was dropped to the bench today, the youngster will now look to keep his foot in the door after a positive performance against their local rivals.

The Villans host Burnley at Villa Park on Thursday and then make a short trip to the Hawthornes on Sunday to face West Bromwich Albion, the last time these two sides met was in the Championship Play-Off semi-finals in the 2018/19 season.

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