Aston Villa picked up their first Premier League point of the season, but were left to rue missed chances in their 0-0 draw against Hull City. After an improved performance against Arsenal, Unai Emery was hoping for better fortunes in what was his 200th game in charge of the Villans. A positive start saw Nicolas Jackson head wide in the opening couple of minutes, before youngster George Hemmings managed the club’s first shot on target of the season in the first quarter of an hour. However, the reigning Europa League champions often lacked the imagination to concern the newly promoted Tigers, who looked the most threatening during the first 45 with their collection of long-range efforts.
That was until the start of the second half, which saw Villa spurn two glorious opportunities. First, some neat interplay between Emi Buendia and Jackson left John McGinn one-on-one with Konstantinos Tzolakis, only for the Scot to blaze his shot too high. Three minutes later, an even better chance fell for Buendia, who couldn’t keep his effort down after being left unmarked inside the penalty area. From that point on, Villa lacked the imagination to cause any real threat and it was the hosts who should’ve stolen the points.
Mohamed Belloumi saw a stunning curling effort crash off the crossbar just after the hour mark. Then at the death, Ryan Giles picked out Oli McBurnie inside the penalty area, but the hero from the Championship fluffed his lines when a first Premier League goal for the Tigers looked inevitable. While not three wins from three, the stalemate does mean that Hull remain unbeaten, something unfathomable at the start of the campaign. Meanwhile, Villa’s first point is enough for them to climb out of the bottom three. 13: SHOT ON TARGET!
Hemmings fires at Tzolakis for Villa’s first shot on target this season. 45: NO PENALTY! Appeals for a penalty as Ajayi nudges Jackson waved away. 53: OVER! Buendia spurns glorious chance after incredible Suzuki pass. 65: CROSSBAR! Stunning Belloumi effort crashes off the crossbar! 89: SAVE!
Cho fires good chance straight at Suzuki! 90: HUGE MISS! McBurnie misses his kick to surely give Hull another late winner!
