Aston Villa secured a vital three points with a 3-2 victory away to Tottenham Hotspur. The win lifts Unai Emery's side to 15th in the Premier League standings on four points after five games.
Johan Manzambi opened the scoring deep into first-half stoppage time, finishing from Boubacar Kamara's assist. Nicolas Jackson doubled the lead in the 67th minute, capitalising on a long pass from Zion Suzuki. Emiliano Buendía added a third with 11 minutes remaining, set up by John McGinn.
Tottenham pulled two goals back late through Conor Gallagher and Jan Paul van Hecke but could not complete a comeback. The hosts also had a Mohammed Kudus effort ruled out for offside by VAR and played briefly with ten men when Micky van de Ven required treatment after a clash with Tyrone Mings.
After the match, Tottenham manager Roberto De Zerbi delivered a frank assessment of his team's performance and their difficult start to the season. "I am very disappointed, sad and frustrated for the performance," he said. De Zerbi pointed to a significant increase in his side's use of long balls and suggested the summer signing of Kudus had disrupted the team's balance. He also called for more from big-money signings Dominic Solanke and Mateus Fernandes.
In contrast, Villa boss Unai Emery was pleased with his players' application. "The players did well because they believed," he said, praising their execution of the game plan.
The result extends Villa's recent form to three wins in their last five matches across all competitions. They now face a two-week break before their next Premier League fixture, a home match against fourth-placed Brentford on 10 October. The team will be looking to build on their current tally of 4 points from a possible 15.
This story first appeared at The Guardian Football
