Manchester City boss Enzo Maresca rues costly errors as Aston Villa inflict first league defeat
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox
Aston Villa’s Nicolas Jackson celebrates their fourth successive home league victory over Manchester City on Oct 24.
PHOTO: REUTERS
- Manchester City’s perfect Premier League start ended with a 2-1 loss at Aston Villa after two costly defensive errors, despite City creating more chances and dominating play.
- Erling Haaland scored on his return from injury, but Villa goalkeeper Zion Suzuki made key saves and helped Villa seal a fourth straight home league win over City.
- Enzo Maresca called the goals “avoidable”, while Unai Emery said the win was “a really good test” and “one step forward” for Villa’s rebuilt side.
AI generated
BIRMINGHAM – Manchester City’s perfect start to the English Premier League season came to an abrupt end at Villa Park on Oct 24 when two costly mistakes condemned Enzo Maresca’s side to a 2-1 defeat, despite them dominating large stretches of the contest.
City arrived in Birmingham having won all seven of their league matches but a pair of defensive blunders gave Aston Villa their chances and they took both.
Marc Guehi’s early miscontrol allowed John McGinn to set up Nicolas Jackson for the opening goal, while goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma allowed Jackson’s low shot to squirm underneath him after the hour mark.
The result was particularly frustrating for City given the balance of play. They registered seven shots on target to Villa’s two and repeatedly forced Zion Suzuki into action, but the Japan goalkeeper produced a string of excellent saves to preserve the hosts’ lead.
There was at least one positive for City with Erling Haaland scoring on his return from a foot injury. The Norwegian had sat out the Oct 20 5-1 Champions League rout of AEK Athens but headed home from Iliman Ndiaye’s cross for City’s lone goal.
The afternoon belonged instead to Suzuki, who continued to justify Villa’s faith since they signed him in August to replace the departed Emiliano Martinez.
Time and again, he denied City, frustrating Haaland and company as Villa claimed their fourth successive home league victory over the Sky Blues.
Maresca was left to lament his side’s wastefulness and the two avoidable goals that ultimately decided the match.
He said: “Performance overall was good, amount of chances we created. Absolutely, both (goals were avoidable).
“Sometimes you have to be a bit more lucky because we only conceded those two chances. But we created a lot of chances.
“We played most of the game in their box but you have to be clinical and avoid mistakes like the two goals we conceded.”
For Villa, after a turbulent summer of arrivals and departures – including Martinez who went to Chelsea – there were finally signs that Unai Emery’s rebuilt side are beginning to settle after a poor league start of three losses from their first four games.
“Today was a really good test, I was so excited for this test,” Emery said. “Today is one step forward.”
City have little time to dwell on the defeat, with back-to-back meetings against high-flying Brighton & Hove Albion next on the agenda – first in the League Cup fourth round on Oct 28 and then in the Premier League on Oct 31.
“A top team, another one,” City defender Ruben Dias said.
“A different way to play so we’ll make the adaptation then focus on ourselves... That’s the main thing – our spirit, our will to win.” REUTERS