aston villa 1 v 4 west ham - dean smith's last home game

 

It proved to be his last home game.

 

The writing was on the wall when West Ham scored with just seven minutes on the clock. A brilliant Ollie Watkins equaliser gave grounds for hope, but then three unanswered goals and a red-card for Ezri Konsa signalled the beginning of the end. He cut a lonely figure as the final whistle went.

 

Thank you Dean for everything you did to bring us back to the Premiership. 

 

 



 

 

 

  

 

 

 

aston villa 2 v wolves 3

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

aston villa 1 v 2 bournemouth

And so another season begins, but this time it's the Premier League - not the Championship.

Our opening game at Tottenham Hotspur sees us seize an early lead through a John McGinn goal as Villa put in an impressive first-half performance. But then Spurs pile on the pressure after the restart and sadly we leave 3 v 1 to the worse.

So now it's our first home game against Bournemouth and the excitement is palpable.  The exterior of Villa Park has been smartened up with a fresh coat of paint, new badges and a huge photo on the North Stand that features Dean Smith and Jack Grealish clutching the Championship Play-Off Cup.  Some things, however, remain the same.  My son, Ben, makes a bee-line for the 'Bostin' Fish'n'Chips' stall and lunch is sorted.

It's buzzing inside the ground - a near sell-out crowd. The teams emerge to rapturous applause as the North Stand ticket-holders lift up a series of cards that come together in a giant AVFC mural. Sadly the feel-good factor doesn't last long.  Tin Heaton, our new goal-keeper, concedes a penalty in the first minute. Joshua King steps up to the spot and before we know it we're one nil down. 
Things go from bad to worse. A mistake by Douglas Luiz, our new mid-fielder, lets in Harry Wilson whose buzzing shot hits Tyrone Mings and deflects past the stranded Heaton. Twelve minutes in and two nil down.

The second-half is much more like it. Villa drive Bournemouth deep and a superb shot from Luiz sails into the back of the net. Sadly, despite attack after attack, Villa fall short. Two games, two defeats.