Aston Villa vs Brighton man of the match: Jack Grealish

[Editor’s Note] Every match, Liam - our young writer - selects a ‘man of the match’ - win, lose or draw. Today, his selection is Jack Grealish! Thanks Liam.

Villa Park saw a mixture of bedlam and euphoria as Matt Targett’s 94th minute winner secured Aston Villa a 2-1 victory against the Seagulls.

The Villans looked complacent inside the first quarter of an hour and Graham Potter’s side took the lead in the 21st minute after summer signing Adam Webster’s header beat Tom Heaton in the net. Dean Smith’s side looked re-energised after conceding early and looked to have equalised before the end of the first half but Conor Hourihane’s goal was ruled out by VAR, cue the Villa faithful vehemently voicing their disapproval of the officials decision. Justice was served minutes later after Captain Jack connected with Guilbert’s cross and placed the ball past a helpless Matt Ryan in goal. After Brighton’s midfield maestro Aaron Mooy was dismissed late in the first half, the Seagulls expectedly sat back throughout the second half with Villa dominating possession and having lots of chances on goal. The home side left it late to secure an important victory with full back Matt Targett’s powerful strike securing all three points for Aston Villa.

Despite the team lacking cohesion at stages during the fixture one man proved to everyone in attendance, including a certain Gareth Southgate, why he belongs in England’s top division alongside the world’s elite, that man was my Man of the Match Jack Grealish. After a fantastic performance against Norwich City before the International break, Super Jack looks to have continued playing well as the Englishman was a consistent nuisance to Brighton’s defence. On the ball, he floats like a butterfly as he continually bamboozles defences with his skill and stings like a bee as he possesses a clinical edge which is finally blossoming in front of our very own eyes. We as Villa fans are fortunate to have him at our club and I look forward to seeing how he progresses in the upcoming months.

A fantastic win against the Seagulls however with Man City and Liverpool on the horizon, how many points will we get against these two top sides?