Aston Villa 2 Derby County 1 - Player ratings

Jed Steer

Commanded his box confidently and made a couple of huge claims from crosses in injury time.

Distribution was slightly nervy at times, but nowhere near as jittery as his counterpart.

Very little the semi-final hero could have done about Waghorn's goal. 7/10

Neil Taylor

Bravely put his head into the flying boots but passed the ball out of play on a couple of occasions.

Made an important covering block towards the end with the score at 2-1 and played his part marshalling Derby's dangerous attackers. 6/10

Tyrone Mings

Tried a few too many raking long balls early on but was calm on the ball at the back, and a dominant presence in the air from set pieces.

Injured himself sliding in on Waghorn in the build-up to Derby's goal, but it was a brilliant tackle nonetheless. 7/10

Axel Tuanzebe

Fluffed an early chance in the box when a corner fell kindly to him, but was composure personified at the back.

Surely he is good enough for the Premier League, but the question is, will he be at Villa next season? 7/10

Ahmed Elmohamady

Swung in the cross for El Ghazi's goal and put in an all-round steady performance.

Worked well with Adomah and then Green to manage his flank throughout the game.

A reliable display from a reliable right-back. 7/10

John McGinn

Exactly the sort of of man you need in a final, and his tenacious energy had Derby rattled.

Had the bit between his teeth and forced Kelle Roos into one mistake before he forced him into the all important one.

A brilliant performance from Villa's new cult hero. 9/10

Conor Hourihane

Defensively disciplined in the first half, and made a crucial recovery tackle to stop Lawrence letting fly.

Was the pivot at the base of midfield, and his quick-thinking from that position helped set up the first goal.

Justified his selection with an all-round impressive performance. 7/10

Jack Grealish

Fired over from range early on and found El Ghazi on the wing, but was unusually quiet in the first half.

Tried to pass back inside when he should have shot at 2-0 to put the game beyond doubt. 6/10

Albert Adomah

Struggled to test the ageing Ashley Cole enough in the first half but had a hand in the goal, when he picked up Hourihane's long ball before setting Elmohamady.

Brought off for Andre Green with 20 minutes to go. 6/10

Tammy Abraham

Played the lone striker brilliantly.

Held the ball up with strength but used his quick feet to get Villa on the move.

Nearly curled one into the top corner on the half hour mark but it was a supremely selfless performance from the top scorer. 8/10

Anwar El Ghazi

Villa's bright spark. Scored just before half-time through sheer willpower after a dangerous burst from deep early on got the Villa fans off their feet.

Out on his feet by the end, but one goal and one assist tells you how he important he was. 8/10

Substitutes

Andre Green (Adomah 73)

Helped run the clock down when necessary. 6/10

Kortney Hause (Mings 86)

Kept Derby out for the final few minutes. 6/10

Unused: Whelan, Lansbury, Jedinak, Kodjia, Kalinic (gk).