EFL Championship Playoff Match Report: Aston Villa 2-1 West Brom

Aston Villa inched closer to the finals of the EFL Championship playoffs, as the Lions forged a remarkable comeback to overcome Midlands rivals West Brom 2-1 at Villa Park in the first leg of the playoff semi-finals.

Dwight Gayle capitalised on Glen Whelan’s sloppiness to give West Brom the lead just 16 minutes into the game but second-half goals from Conor Hourihane and Tammy Abraham ensured that Villa head into the second leg at Hawthorns with a 2-1 aggregate lead.

Boosted by the return of top-scorer Tammy Abraham, Villa started off as the brighter of the two sides and dominated possession in the midfield, though neither teams managed to create any clear-cut openings in the first 10 minutes or so.

The hosts dictated the play but West Brom could have had the opener at the 11th minute-mark when Jay Rodriguez’s powerful effort from the edge of the box was tipped on to the crossbar by the fingertips of Jed Steer.

Having managed to escape an early scare, Villa were apparently satisfied to keep hold of the ball in the midfield, while Albion looked to threaten on the counter.

But then, just 16 minutes into the game, Glen Whelan’s bizarre passing allowed Dwight Gayle just enough room to fire the Baggies in front, driving his shot into the bottom right corner of Steer’s net to hand Albion the edge in the first leg.

The home fans would not have anticipated that coming and Villa looked a bit rattled after Gayle’s opener. There was nothing more eventful in the first half, barring an injury to Baggies centre-back Craig Dawson and a couple of mazy runs from Villa’s Anwar El Ghazi.

Dean Smith’s side had most of the possession in the first half but they lacked the penetration to cause West Brom’s defence too many problems, while Albion’s counter-attacking ploy seemed to be working perfectly.

Trailing 1-0 at the interval, the home side needed to pull their socks up in the second half, and so they did. Tammy Abraham rose high inside the box to meet Albert Adomah’s cross from the right but the Chelsea loanee fired his header agonisingly wide of the mark before El Ghazi’s curled his effort wide from a tight angle.

Villa kept probing away at the opposition but West Brom held on their lead. Gayle’s time-wasting tactics earned him a booking before Dean Smith decided that he needed to ring the changes to get his side back into the game. Andre Green and Conor Hourihane replaced Glen Whelan and Albert Adomah and the substitutes went on to play a key role in Villa’s comeback.

With 15 minutes remaining, Jack Grealish set up Hourihane, who slammed home the equaliser from the edge of the box to draw Villa level. There was, however, more drama to unfold, and Kieran Gibb’s rash challenge on Grealish inside the box handed the hosts a golden opportunity to take the lead.

Tammy Abraham calmly sent Sam Johnstone the wrong way from the spot and slotted it home into the bottom corner to make it 2-1 in favour of Villa, sparking wild celebrations amongst the home fans at Villa Park.

Things went bad to worse for the Baggies when Dwight Gayle received the marching orders for a second bookable offence, reducing West Brom to 10 men in the dying stages of the game.

Gayle had every right to go for the ball as a striker but one cannot help but feel that his challenge on goalkeeper Jed Steer was a very late one.

West Brom’s fate could have been sealed had Andre Green managed to score the third in injury-time after some brilliant link-up play from Grealish and Abraham. The Baggies, though, have a tough job on their hands in the second-leg, with Gayle out for the count, while Hal Robson-Kanu is already suspended.

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Just to remind the fans around the globe that the away goals rule, which so often proves decisive in European competitions, is not in place for the EFL Playoffs, meaning that West Brom would need to score two goals at the Hawthorns if they are to make it to the finals.

Here’s how some of the joyous Villa fans reacted to the victory over their Midlands rivals

What a result Villa, come on you lions! Finish it off at the Hawthorns in the week 😍⚽️🦁 #villa #holteend #vtid #avfc #utv #astonvilla #baggies #AVLWBA #WBAAVL #playoff #efl #championship #firstleg
— Reuben Field (@readmenowlisten) May 11, 2019

Superb turnaround by #AstonVilla … #AVLWBA 2-1
— Ken Ndurungi (@k_ndurungi) May 11, 2019

Gayle deserved to be sent off , time wasted constantly, tried to con the ref , yes he had a right to go for the ball , but he was so late to it #avfc #avlwba
— Ash Skinner (@Villaboy89) May 11, 2019

Goal number 2⃣6⃣ of the season!

Tammy Abraham is unstoppable 💪#AVLWBA pic.twitter.com/lnYhaEzqgM
— William Hill (@WilliamHill) May 11, 2019

Completely deserved comeback for Villa for no other reason than Dwight Gayles complete shithousery #avlwba
— Olly W (@oyeyw) May 11, 2019

Absolutely delighted Gayle was sent off. Spent the whole game wasting time and diving, no intention of actually playing football. Terrible sportsmanship #AVLWBA #AVFC
— Dec (@onesocialguy) May 11, 2019

I’d like to see Aston Villa go up to the PL. Massive club.

West Brom boring football club. #AVLWBA #AVFC #WBA— Ron the cab (@Rontings1) May 11, 2019