Villa vs Newcastle man of the match: Conor Hourihane

[Editor’s Note] Every match, Liam - our young writer - selects a ‘man of the match’ - win, lose or draw.

Scenes of delirium and euphoria were prevalent on Steve Bruce’s return to Villa Park as goals from Conor Hourihane and Anwar El Ghazi helped secure Aston Villa all three points after beating Newcastle United 2-0!

Despite the Magpies being tough to breakdown in open play, set pieces were where the away side looked weak and frail and in the 32nd minute Conor Hourihane opened the scoring for Villa. The Irishman with a touch of wizardry powerfully struck the ball past a hapless Dubravka. The Villans extended their lead four minutes later with Hourihane turning into the creator on this occasion, accurately curling the ball into the box where El Ghazi was waiting to tap the ball into the net. The home side continued to dominate possession for the remainder of the fixture and comfortably secured their 4th win of the season.

Many players in claret and blue were worthy of the accolade of my Man of the Match however there was one Irishman who stepped up when he was needed during the Monday Night fixture and that was Conor Hourihane.

The central midfielder was prolific from set pieces as he constantly caused the Newcastle’s defence problems throughout the match. In possession he was calm and composed, bringing players into the game when needed as well as bombarding Steve Bruce’s side with long passes, pecking away at the Magpies resolve. Conor’s performance was reminiscent of Spanish midfielder Xavi due to his persistent dogged nature and proved to the Villa faithful why he is an important member of their team.

After a productive Monday nights work, can Dean Smith’s side beat the Red Devils on Sunday? Let’s hope for another three points!