LFL: VILLA

I’d have taken 1-1 before the start but to have played with ten men for more than an hour I think we did well to get that draw.

BEFORE

We've done so well in the league so far that we have to try not to get too carried away and assume we're going to win this afternoon. Villa have struggled and are without a win and even a goal in their four league matches but they'll be no pushover. It looks like Le Fee is likely to return today and he'll always be a great asset but I wouldn't expect much change other than that. West Ham and Wolves both lost yesterday and a defeat or a draw today would keep Villa in the bottom three along with them. I'll be watching the match in the company of other members of the London Branch and though of course I hope for a win, I think it's going to end in a 1-1 draw, which would be a decent result.

I got to the rendezvous around 2.30 and on checking the team-news, I saw that Le Fee and Rigg were starting in place of Adingra and the apparently injured Diarra. Ballard was back on the bench. Several of the Faithful were already gathered in the bar. There was a great display in the crowd featuring a huge image of Bradley Lowery and the sign Cancer Has No Colours.

THE GAME

After a spirited start from both sides we won the first corner in the fourth minute. Hume took it on our left and it was cleared out for a throw to us on the right. Hume conceded a corner in the ninth and after Villa took it short we pressurised them into passing back to Martinez in goal. We had our first goal attempt in the thirteenth when a Talbi cross from the right was headed just wide by Isidor. Our fans were in very good voice and they were even happier in the eighteenth when we won our second corner. Villa cleared it no bother but we kept pressing and next thing a looping Alderete header had Martinez leaping to grab it. Roefs hadn’t had much to do but was looking as dependable as ever when needs be.

As we entered the second quarter we’d been looking pretty comfortable but then following a Villa free-kick Guessand swivelled and put in a powerful low shot that Roefs blocked and he also blocked an attempt from the rebound. Watkins was ruled offside anyway and that was that. Just after the half-hour there was a serious incident when Cash knocked Reinildo down and the latter raised his boot towards the stomach of Cash who then did a lot of rolling around on the deck. The result of it all was that Reinildo was red-carded. So, as we were down to ten men things of course took on a different hue. One almost immediate change was that we brought on Ballard for Rigg to bolster things up. Villa started to put on a good deal of pressure without creating a real scoring chance. Mukiele conceded a free-kick in a dangerous spot near the right angle of our box but we cleared it well. There were three minutes of added-time, unsurprisingly, but we held out okay and it remained goalless as the half-time whistle went. It was shaping up to be an interesting second period…

As we kicked off again Villa proceeded to put on the pressure and it was looking like it was going to be a long half. We battled back and Talbi lobbed an effort wide a few minutes in. Things were getting decidedly edgy and a few more cards were looking likely. A great header from Alderete came back off the bar and had us fans in the bar gasping. It was Villa’s turn to be on the back-foot and in the fifty-fifth we won another corner. It was immediately followed by another on the other side that resulted in three Villa players rolling around clutching various parts of their anatomies and also a free-kick against us. As we passed the hour-mark our fans were still in great voice and we looked the likelier side to score. Ballard was yellow-carded for seemingly doing nothing more than trying to wriggle out of the clutches of several defenders while a corner was about to be taken. Villa took the lead in the sixty-seventh when Cash hit a powerful shot from outside the box and Roefs could only push it into the roof of the net.

There was still plenty of time for us to get an equaliser and I wondered which further substitutions would be made. Xhaka had a weak shot on target in the seventieth and shortly afterwards Sadiki was also yellow-carded. Next thing we looked vulnerable when Malen was suddenly bearing down on Roefs but he fumbled it and next thing we were level. A clever looping ball from Xhaka reached Isidor as he outpaced a defender or two and he slipped the ball past Martinez into the net. Our lot in the bar went apeshit. In the eightieth Mayenda came on for Isidor while Masuaku and Geertruida replaced Talbi and Le Fee. Time was ticking away and I was hoping those fresh legs would help get us at least a draw. As we entered the final five minutes I could hear our fans roaring out. Xhaka joined the yellow card club, rather harshly I thought. Villa were piling on the pressure as time slipped away and we obtained some relief when Hume was fouled. I could definitely have done without the five minutes of added time. Neil came on for Sadiki. Three minutes into the added-time Roefs was again in the right place to make a crucial block on the line. Villa kept pressing but we were defending well as chants echoed round the stadium. It ended 1-1.