Aston Villa 0 Man United 0 - Report
Villa missed the chance to climb into the Premier League top four as they were held at home by Manchester United.
Four days on from beating Bayern Munich, Unai Emery’s team were unable to recreate the same magic in a flat performance.
United came closer to scoring, Marcus Rashford twice testing Emi Martinez, before Bruno Fernandes sent a free-kick against the bar.
Youri Tielemans registered Villa’s only attempt on target, though Jaden Philogene did go close to a late winner.
Analysis
Philogene, starting for the first time in the Premier League following his summer return from Hull, saw a far post effort blocked by Diogo Dalot as the hosts pushed late for a winner.
Villa looked more likely to get it in a match where they did most of the attacking but frequently picked the wrong option in the final third.
While a first Premier League clean sheet of the season is a positive, this was an opportunity missed against a United team who arrived at Villa Park winless in four with their manager, Erik ten Hag, under big pressure.
This result might be enough to save him but rarely have a United team looked so insipid.
Villa, frustratingly, were unable to capitalise, on a day in which Ezri Konsa became the latest member of Emery’s squad to suffer injury.
The defender was forced off after just 12 minutes and his involvement for England in the forthcoming Nations League matches is now in doubt.
Emery made three changes to the team which started against Bayern, though two of them were enforced with both Amadou Onana and Jacob Ramsey failing to recover from injury in time.
Leon Bailey, who had also been an injury doubt, came into the XI along with Ross Barkley, who made his first Premier League start since rejoining the club from Luton in the summer.
Matty Cash also featured for the first time since August following a hamstring injury, replacing Diego Carlos in defence.
The former did not have a great start, losing the ball to Marcus Rashford which resulted in the United striker testing Emi Martinez with an early curling effort.
Within 12 minutes, meanwhile, Carlos was on the pitch, replacing Ezri Konsa after the centre-back became the latest Villa player to sustain injury.
By then the hosts had threatened through Rogers, who exchanged passes with Watkins before firing an effort just wide of the post.
Otherwise, it was hard going for the hosts, who made a series of poor decisions on the occasions they did find the space to threaten the visitors.
Jaden Philogene provided a rare moment of quality when he dispossessed Kobbie Mainoo and sent a swerving shot wide of the post.
That was pretty much it as far as attempts on goal went before the break, when United were forced into two defensive changes due to injuries to Harry Maguire and Noussair Mazraoui.
The second half began like the first, Martinez denying Rashford though this time much more impressively, getting the faintest of fingertips to a dipping drive and turning it over the bar.
Villa finally registered a shot on target 10 minutes after the restart, Tielemans bringing a smart stop from Onana following a short corner routine.
Watkins then drilled an effort just over from the edge of the box as the hosts began to move through the gears.
Rashford was booked for bringing down Cash then taken off by Ten Hag after being rather fortunate to escape a second yellow when he tripped Bailey moments after.
Villa were improved but United then unlucky not to be in front when Fernandes fizzed a free-kick off the bar and Antony, from the edge of the box, turned the rebound wide.
Antony also tested Martinez with a curling effort, before Digne sent a free-kick well over the bar at the other end.
Emery had introduced super-sub Jhon Duran at that point but even he was struggling to create his usual magic, at one point curling a cross out of play for a goal-kick.
Villa looked the most likely scorers and Philogene was denied a winner in stoppage time when Dalot deflected his effort wide of the far post.
Teams
Villa (4-2-3-1): Martinez, Cash, Konsa (Carlos 12), Torres, Digne (Maatsen 85), Barkley, Tielemans, Bailey (Duran 62), Rogers, Philogene, Watkins Subs not used: Nedeljkovic, Bogarde, Swinkels, Buendia, Young, Gauci (gk).
Man Utd: Onana, Mazraoui (Lindelof HT), Maguire (De Ligt HT), Evans, Dalot, Mainoo (Casemiro 85), Eriksen, Garnacho, Fernandes, Rashford (Antony 64), Hojlund (Zirkzee 64) Subs not used: Martinez, Diallo, Ugarte, Bayindir (gk).
