Sunderland AFC 1-1 Aston Villa
by Roger Domeneghetti
at the Stadium of Light

FINALLY, Aston Villa have a goal to their name. But this was a laboured performance against a team reduced to 10 men for the best part of an hour, and they will be ruing the fact they did not take all three points

Sunderland by contrast reinforced the idea that the Stadium of Light will not be an easy destination for any team this season, with a gritty performance after Reinildo Mandava had been sent off for a petulant kick at Matty Cash.

The first half was not one for the neutrals. The hosts created slightly more, Wilson Isidor and Omar Alderete drawing saves from Emi Martinez. However, it was Evann Guessand who had the best chance of the half, arguably of Villa’s season to date, but his shot was saved at point-blank range by Robin Roefs. 

A foot either side and Villa would have broken their scoring duck. The Dutchman was equally alert to Ollie Watkins’s effort from the rebound, although it would not have counted, the offside flag having been raised.

Then Mandava had a rush of blood to the head after Cash had pushed him to the ground, kicking out as he fell. Despite his length protestations, the experienced campaigner should have known better and gave his team an unnecessary disadvantage.

By contrast, it presented a huge opportunity for Villa to register their first win, their first goal but they laboured away, their brand of slow, possession-based increasingly looking just passive.

Despite their numerical disadvantage, Sunderland looked the stronger, repeatedly bullying their opponents off the ball. Just six minutes into the break they came close to opening the scoring, Omar Alderete’s looping header hitting the bar with Martinez stranded.

Then, when the opener did come for Villa after 67 minutes, it was against the run of play. After a short corner was worked across the top of Sunderland’s area, Cash unleashed a swerving, dipping 25-yard drive. Roefs was rightly disappointed he didn’t do better having got two fists to it.

Villa never quite looked comfortable and Sunderland grabbed the deserved equaliser just eight minutes later, Granit Xhaka heading over the defence for Wilson Isidor to tap home.