Aston Villa defeated Fulham at Villa Park to climb to fifth place in the Premier League and increase the likelihood of getting into a European tournament for the first time in over a decade.
Tyrone Mings’ glancing header after just 20 minutes from John McGinn’s wonderful swinging corner was the winner against a good Fulham side. Ollie Watkins’ attempt was stopped by Bernd Leno, Emiliano Buendia’s shot was all but waved away, and McGinn was frustrated by Leno as Villa tried to score a second goal but were unable to do so. Andreas Pereira’s acrobatic volley into the side netting gave Fulham the lead after just 30 seconds, but they were unable to generate any more quality chances.
Despite having played two more games, Unai Emery’s Villa are now unbeaten in 10 Premier League games. With this victory, they have surpassed Tottenham and are now five points behind third-place Newcastle United.
