Player Ratings: Leeds United 0-3 Aston Villa - Sweet victory at Elland Road!

Emi Martinez: 7/10

Another quiet day at the office for the Argentine, with only a single save to make throughout the entirety of the match. Regardless, Martinez’s composure and distribution from the back was a key component in securing Aston Villa’s third clean sheet in a row.

Matty Cash: 8/10

Ruthless at both ends of the pitch, Cash added a goal and an assist to his tally this season, and also made a number of key tackles in which helped relieve pressure from oncoming Leeds United attacks.

Calum Chambers: 7.5/10

A rather seamless integration into the Aston Villa side for the centre-back, who scored an absolute peach of a goal last night in which comfortably beat Illan Meslier and gave his side a 3-0 lead.

Tyrone Mings: 7/10

Villa’s captain deserves plenty of praise following the trip to Elland Road as he was able to shine brightly throughout all of the opposing chants and jeers towards him, grabbing an assist on Calum Chambers’ wonderful strike.

Lucas Digne: 7.5/10

The Frenchman slotted right back into Steven Gerrard’s starting lineup and didn’t look out of place whatsoever, showing some real bits of quality when on the ball and helped push his side further up the pitch on a number of occasions.

Douglas Luiz: 7/10

Was a key part of Villa’s midfield engine on the evening as the Brazilian dealt with Leeds’ pressure in the middle of the pitch rather comfortably and played a number of tidy passes as well.

John McGinn: 8/10

The key cog in the Aston Villa midfield continued his strong form with another pleasing performance on Thursday evening, using his body to full effect when shielding the ball and keeping Leeds’ midfield tame throughout the match.

Jacob Ramsey: 7/10

Although the 20-year-old hasn’t appeared on the scoresheet for a little while now and looked rather fatigued on the evening, the young Villan was tidy in possession and simplified things for his side from a ball retention point of view, with Leeds often bombing forward in great numbers.

Philippe Coutinho: 8/10

Villa fans are running out of words when it comes to describing the excellence of the Brazilian these days as he makes moments of pure brilliance in every single match that he plays in. Last night was no different, with the attacking midfielder getting on the scoresheet and leading his side to a third straight victory.

Ollie Watkins: 7/10

No goals for the striker on the evening, but his determination to drive Villa forward when in possession and his promising link-up play with Philippe Coutinho and Danny Ings at times was a pleasure to see.

Danny Ings: 7/10

The striker added another assist to this season’s tally, making it a goal and three assists in his last two matches. Ings’ willingness to run down various channels and press Leeds’ defenders was a key factor in his sides’ success on Thursday.

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SUBSTITUTES:

Morgan Sanson (71 mins): 7/10

Replaced the hard-working Danny Ings and helped maintain Villa’s composure and rythym throughout the final stages of the match.

Emi Buendia (77 mins): N/A

Replaced Philippe Coutinho.

Ashley Young (87 mins): N/A

Replaced Douglas Luiz.

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MAN OF THE MATCH: Matty Cash

The right-back was brilliant last night and was a true joy to watch at both ends of the pitch. I think it’s fair to say that many Villa fans, including myself, thought a rumoured €40 million bid by Atlético Madrid in the coming summer would be a good move for the football club and various other potential replacements could be a better fit for Gerrard’s system. With that being said, I’m pleased to say that myself and others were wrong with that mindset — we’re seeing the best form of Cash’s Villa career thus far and long may it continue!

Photo by Stu Forster/Getty Images