Aston Villa vs Man City LIVE: Premier League result, final score and reaction tonight after Leon Bailey earns draw
Aston Villa host Manchester City in the Premier League desperately needing to pick up points after losing their last three games. Manager Steven Gerrard remains under heavy pressure after their loss to Arsenal on Wednesday in which Gabriel Jesus and Gabriel Martinelli gave the Gunners a 2-1 win.
The Villans only have a solitary win thus far - 2-1 against Everton - and sit second bottom in the table after four defeats from five games. New faces could turn their form around with deadline day signings Leander Dendoncker and Jan Bednarek providing more top-flight experience to Gerrard’s side.
However, they have a thankless task ahead of them as they take on Pep Guardiola’s Man City this evening. The champions are in rampant form and come into the fixture on the back of a 6-0 thrashing of newly-promoted Nottingham Forest in midweek. Erling Haaland is the division’s most in form player after scoring hat-tricks in back-to-back outings and looks set for more goals at Villa Park.
City sit second in the table and with first-placed Arsenal facing a resurgent Manchester United tomorrow they know the possibility is there to end the weekend top of the pile if they collect three points against Aston Villa tonight.
Follow all the action as Aston Villa face Manchester City in the Premier League:
Aston Villa vs Man City
74’ GOAL! Leon Bailey draws Aston Villa level
50’ GOAL! Erling Haaland opens the scoring with his 10th goal of the season
5’ CHANCE! Walker in on goal and blazes high and wide with Haaland waiting for a tap-in, 0-0
Aston Villa XI: Martinez, Cash, Konsa, Mings, Digne, McGinn, Kamara, Douglas Luiz, Ramsey, Watkins, Bailey
Man City XI: Ederson, Walker, Dias, Stones, Cancelo, Rodri, Gundogan, De Bruyne, Bernardo, Foden, Haaland
Aston Villa FC 1 - 1 Manchester City FC
FT Aston Villa 1-1 Man City
19:32 , Michael Jones
FT Aston Villa 1-1 Man City
19:28 , Michael Jones
Manchester City are undefeated in their last 18 games in the Premier League, their longest run since 19 games from November 2020 to March 2021.
Full-time: Aston Villa 1-1 Man City
19:23 , Michael Jones
90+4 mins: There’s the final whistle and the points are shared! Pep Guardiola’s Premier League champions have to settle for just one point.
That keeps them in second place behind Arsenal who face Manchester United tomorrow. This result will feel like a win for the under pressure Steven Gerrard.
Villa remain in the relegation but this was a much improved performance and they take a deserved point from the game.
Aston Villa 1-1 Man City
19:19 , Michael Jones
90 mins: Four minutes of added time to play.
Joao Cancelo weaves into the left side of the box but the ball comes loose to Phil Foden who takes a snapshot and forces Emi Martinez into a sharp save to his right.
Leon Bailey goes off with Emiliano Buendia brought on for Villa.
Aston Villa 1-1 Man City
19:17 , Michael Jones
89 mins: Mahrez hooks a shot wide of goal after Haaland and Gundogan combined to creat an overload at the back post. The offside flag went up anyway so the goal wouldn’t have counted.
Man City are getting closer to scoring though.
Aston Villa 1-1 Man City
19:15 , Jack Rathborn
Aston Villa 1-1 Man City
19:15 , Michael Jones
86 mins: Close! An Aston Villa mix-up gives the ball to City high up the pitch. Rodri gets it and checks to the right before drilling a low effort towards the bottom left corner.
Martinez dives across but he’s not getting there and luckily for Villa the effort rolls narrowly wide.
Aston Villa 1-1 Man City
19:11 , Michael Jones
83 mins: Aston Villa believe. They’re throwing themselves into the midfield challenges and looking to drive forward at any opportunity. The game is there to be won - by either team.
Less than 10 minutes to go.
Aston Villa 1-1 Man City
19:08 , Michael Jones
80 mins: Coutinho scores a beaut of a goal from just outside the box but the whistle has already gone for an offside and it doesn’t count.
Kyle Walker is taken off by Pep Guardiola with Nathan Ake coming on.
Aston Villa 1-1 Man City
19:06 , Michael Jones
77 mins: Emi Martinez smothers a through ball and pulls up as he gets to his feet. He signals to the Villa bench to come off but after a check from the physios seems to be okay to play on.
That’s one to keep an eye on for Steven Gerrard.
GOAL! Aston Villa 1-1 Man City (74’, Bailey)⚽️
19:01 , Michael Jones
74 mins: Beautiful from Leon Bailey! City try to head the ball away from their own box but it’s won by Villa and played down to Jacob Ramsey.
Ramsey drives into the left side of the box and fizzes the ball across to Bailey who meets it with a powerful left-footed strike that flies into the back of the net.
Great goal.
Aston Villa 0-1 Man City
19:01 , Michael Jones
73 mins: Riyad Mahrez comes on to take the place of Bernardo Silva for Manchester City.
Aston Villa 0-1 Man City
18:57 , Michael Jones
70 mins: Save! Martinez denies Haaland a second with a sharp save to his left. Ramsey overcommits himself in midfield allowing space to open up for De Bruyne.
De Bruyne drives into it before giving the ball to Haaland in the box. He peels away from the defender and drills one at goal but it’s a confortable height for Martinez to turn away.
Aston Villa 0-1 Man City
18:55 , Michael Jones
68 mins: Mings fouls Haaland right on the edge of the ’D’ and City have a fantastic chance to double their lead. Kevin De Bruyne and Ilkay Gundogan stand over the ball but there’s only going to be one man taking this.
De Bruyne gets the ball over the wall and it dips just enough to land on the crossbar! Emi Martinez was rooted to the spot, a couple of inches lower and that’s a goal!
Aston Villa 0-1 Man City
18:53 , Michael Jones
65 mins: De Bruyne aims for Haaland with every cross he puts in the middle. Konsa and Mings are having to work so hard to ensure the ball doesn’t reach the big striker and somehow they manage to get the ball away.
Phillipe Coutinho comes on to replace John McGinn for Aston Villa.
Aston Villa 0-1 Man City
18:50 , Michael Jones
62 mins: Bernardo and De Bruyne are lethal when they get it to click on the right wing for City. Slick passes between each other to get the ball into the box before De Bruyne’s ball across the middle is blocked behind by Mings.
De Bruyne takes the resultant corner and finds Stones in the box. He can’t turn it at goal and Boubacar Kamara runs it clear.
Aston Villa 0-1 Man City
18:46 , Michael Jones
59 mins: Brilliant from Ederson! Jacob Ramsey recovers the ball for Villa and kicks off a great counter-attack. Ollie Watkins receives the ball and holds it up just enough to draw in the City defenders.
Ramsey runs into space on the left and Watkins slides the ball across to him. His first touch is heavy which allows Ederson to fly off his line and dives onto the ball but Ramsey can shoot.
The ball comes loose and John Stones works it away.
Aston Villa 0-1 Man City
18:44 , Michael Jones
56 mins: John Stones has to put the burners on after Martinez punts the ball up the pitch for Watkins. He gets to the ball first running back towards his own goal then gets a nudge from the Villa striker and goes down winning City a free kick.
Aston Villa 0-1 Man City
18:42 , Michael Jones
53 mins: That could be a killer goal for Aston Villa. It was a perfect delivery from De Bruyne and expert movement from Haaland to get into position inside the six-yard box.
City are more relaxed when they have a lead which allows them more freedom to play.
GOAL! Aston Villa 0-1 Man City (50’, Haaland)⚽️
18:37 , Michael Jones
50 mins: He is inevitable. Bernardo Silva receives the ball on the right wing and lays it off to Kevin De Bruyne who makes an underlapping run over to the right side of the penalty area.
De Bruyne lifts his cross over the outstretched arm of Emi Martinez to pick out Erling Haaland at the back post where the striker taps it home.
Aston Villa 0-0 Man City
18:36 , Michael Jones
48 mins: Douglas Luiz gets from on the right side of the pitch and takes the ball to the byline before hooking an attempted cross straight out of play.
How long will it be before Steven Gerrard starts to think about changing things up?
Second half: Aston Villa 0-0 Man City
18:34 , Michael Jones
Kick off: Manchester City get the match back underway. There are no changes from either side at the break. City have scored a number of second half goals so far in this campaign and will need to do so again if they want to finish the day ahead of Arsenal.
For Aston Villa’s part it’s more of the same. Can the home side keep City quiet for another 45 minutes?
HT Aston Villa 0-0 Man City
18:27 , Michael Jones
HT Aston Villa 0-0 Man City
18:22 , Michael Jones
Before kick off today, Erling Haaland had scored nine Premier League goals from just 105 touches so far, scoring one goal for every 12 touches.
This is the fewest touches per goal by a player in a Premier League season (3+ goals) on record since 2003/04
Half-time: Aston Villa 0-0 Man City
18:17 , Michael Jones
45+2 mins: Goalless at Villa Park. Manchester City haven’t been their slick, clinical and fluid selves but that’s down to Aston Villa’s persistence to keep them off the ball in the centre of the pitch.
The home side have had a few moments of excitement but for the main part they’ve focused on keeping City quiet. So far it’s working.
Aston Villa 0-0 Man City
18:16 , Jack Rathborn
Aston Villa 0-0 Man City
18:15 , Michael Jones
45 mins: Walker’s cross field pass to Foden is intercepted by Young and Villa send the ball back up the pitch. City recover it and look to find a way into the box.
Two minutes to be added on at the end of the half.
Aston Villa 0-0 Man City
18:13 , Michael Jones
41 mins: There’s a bit of fire in Aston Villa’s belly as they’ve gained come confidence in this match. Young and Luiz combine on the right side and swing the ball into the box but a flick on sends it out to Digne on the left.
Digne whips it back into the middle but City boot it away. This is good stuff from the home side who are putting pressure on the champions.
Steven Gerrard looks pleased with what he’s seeing.
Aston Villa 0-0 Man City
18:09 , Michael Jones
38 mins: John McGinn sends a decent cross into the City box and almost picks out Ollie Watkins only for Ruben Dias to leap in front of him and clear.
Phil Foden brings the ball into midfield but Ashley Young wins it back and kicks off a Villa counter-attack. The ball is threaded between the legs of John Stones to set Watkins free into the box.
Stones forces Watkins onto his left foot then leaps in front of the shot. He gets a touch to it which is enough to force it wide of the far post!
Aston Villa 0-0 Man City
18:07 , Jack Rathborn
Aston Villa 0-0 Man City
18:05 , Michael Jones
35 mins: Cancelo weaves his way inside and out of Leon Bailey who’s being asked to help out on Villa’s right side. Cancelo’s initial cross hits Young and drops to Foden.
Foden guides the ball to the byline where Cancelo collects it and flicks a pass into the hands of Emi Martinez.
Aston Villa 0-0 Man City
18:02 , Michael Jones
32 mins: Man City are starting to move the ball slickly but Villa are working hard to close it down. They’re trying to avoid giving City too much time on the ball in central midfield which has resulted in a few heavy 50/50 challenges.
Aston Villa 0-0 Man City
17:58 , Michael Jones
29 mins: Matty Cash can’t play on and now does get replaced with Ashley Young for Aston Villa.
City have a corner that’s played short to Bernardo who gives it to De Bruyne on the wing. De Bruyne sends in a cross and Douglas Luiz scurries it away.
Gundogan collects the loose ball, plays it over to Cancelo on the right and his cross sails over everyone before bouncing out for a goal kick.
Aston Villa 0-0 Man City
17:56 , Michael Jones
26 mins: 37-year-old Ashley Young is called on to get stripped and ready but Cash has hobbled back onto the pitch.
John McGinn gets tackled by De Bruyne who puts a teasing ball back into the middle but can’t pick out a team mate. City recover the ball through Foden who guides it inside.
Villa then push out and the visitors knock the ball back to their defensive line.
Aston Villa 0-0 Man City
17:53 , Michael Jones
23 mins: Matty Cash has gone to ground and looks to have a problem with his left leg. The physios are checking him over but there’s been a lenghty break in play here.
He might have pulled a hamstring.
Aston Villa 0-0 Man City
17:51 , Michael Jones
20 mins: Close! Cash does well initially to keep Foden in check and Douglas Luiz takes the ball of the City man. He gives it back to Cash whose clearance is poor and comes straight to De Bruyne.
De Bruyne lays the ball off to Joao Cancelo who shifts it onto his right foot and drills one at goal winning a corner when the ball deflects out of play.
Aston Villa 0-0 Man City
17:47 , Michael Jones
17 mins: Lucas Digne floats a free kick into the box for Aston Villa and picks out Tyrone Mings who heads the ball back across goal. Ollie Watkins is around but the ball falls to Gundogan and City boot it clear.
Aston Villa 0-0 Man City
17:45 , Michael Jones
14 mins: Chance! Huge opportunity for Man City. Kevin De Bruyne drifts out to the right wing and receives the ball before whipping an incredible cross into the box.
Ilkay Gundogan spilts the Villa centre-backs, lunges at the ball and just misses it. A touch from the midfielder there and it’s a goal.
Aston Villa 0-0 Man City
17:41 , Michael Jones
11 mins: Nice work from Bernardo Silva to shift the ball away from Tyrone Mings and lay it off to Rodri. He flicks a pass over to Phil Foden on the left side of the box but Foden handles the ball.
It bounces to Matty Cash who plays it away from the box and the referee lets play go on as Aston Villa regain possession.
Aston Villa 0-0 Man City
17:38 , Michael Jones
8 mins: Gundogan makes a run into the box and Kevin De Bruyne attempts to pick him out with a cross field pass from the right-back position.
It’s a decent ball but too far away from the midfielder who can’t reach it as it lands inside the box. Emi Martinez watches it safely out of play.
Aston Villa 0-0 Man City
17:36 , Michael Jones
5 mins: There it is! The ball comes to Erling Haaland who has his back to goal. He knocks it back to Ilkay Gundogan who rolls the ball into the right side of the box to meet Kyle Walker’s run.
Haaland’s spun off his marker and made it into the six-yard box waiting for the pass but Walker goes for goal and blasts it over the top.
Aston Villa 0-0 Man City
17:34 , Michael Jones
3 mins: It’s been a slow start from both teams. Aston Villa have been unable to play through Man City with the visitors patiently waiting for their opportunity to strike.
Kick off: Aston Villa 0-0 Man City
17:31 , Michael Jones
Villa get the ball rolling in this final Premier League match of the day.
Aston Villa took a two-goal lead against Man City on the last day of the 2021/22 season to send shivers down the spines of the City fans. Pep Guardiola’s men came back though and beat them 3-2 to win the Premier League by a point.
Can Villa start quickly again today?
Aston Villa vs Man City
17:29 , Michael Jones
Here come the teams. John McGinn leads out a very defensively looking Aston Villa. They’ll have a lot of questions to answer today but the main one is how to deal with Erling Haaland?
Kick off is up next...
Back-to-back bid feels better than ever for Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola
17:26 , Michael Jones
Pep Guardiola believes Manchester City are in a better place to win a third straight Premier League than the previous time they won back-to-back titles.
The Etihad Stadium side have been the dominant side in English football since the Catalan took over, with a third-placed finish in his first season followed by four league crowns in five seasons.
Liverpool are the only side to have won the title during that time, with Jurgen Klopp’s men finishing 18 points ahead of second-placed City in 2019-20.
There was a stark early drop-off after winning the league in 2017-18 and 2018-19, with Guardiola confident they are in a better headspace to go for three in a row now.
Back-to-back bid feels better than ever for Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola
Haaland on verge of goalscoring record
17:22 , Michael Jones
Erling Haaland has scored nine goals in five Premier League appearances.
The player to have reached 10 Premier League goals in the fewest appearances is Mick Quinn, who did so in six games for Coventry in 1992.
Will Coutinho get on the score sheet?
17:17 , Michael Jones
Philippe Coutinho has netted in five of his seven league games against Manchester City.
Aston Villa vs Man City
17:12 , Michael Jones
Warm-ups are underway at Villa Park.
Villa’s key man
17:07 , Michael Jones
Ollie Watkins has scored five goals in four top-flight appearances versus the reigning champions. The Villans will need him to be on target again today if they hope to defeat Man City.
Aston Villa vs Man City
17:03 , Michael Jones
Manchester City are unbeaten in 20 Premier League away games with 15 wins and five draws in that run. There have only been four instances of longer such runs in the competition, will Aston Villa end it today?
Premier League scores
17:02 , Michael Jones
What a finish to the 3pm Premier League kick offs. Goals, drama, offsides they’ve had it all. Here’s how the six top-flight matches ended:
Brentford 5-2 Leeds
Chelsea 2-1 West Ham
Newcastle 0-0 Crystal Palace
Nottingham Forest 2-3 Bournemouth
Tottenham 2-1 Fulham
Wolves 1-0 Southampton
Seven goals in the Brentford match versus Leeds, Bournemouth came from two goals down to win against Forest and West Ham Utd have lost a point against Chelsea due to a dodgy VAR decision that disallowed a goal from Maxwel Cornet.
Villa vs Premier League champions
16:56 , Michael Jones
Aston Villa have lost 15 of their last 16 Premier League games against the reigning champions, with the exception the 7-2 victory over Liverpool in October 2020.
Gerrard on facing Man City
16:52 , Michael Jones
Steven Gerrard was asked about how Aston Villa will go about taking on Manchester City today as they look to move out of the relegation by picking up three points.
“It goes without saying that you’re playing against one of the best teams in the world. They’re littered with world class stars and arguably the best manager out there.” said the Villa boss,
“That’s the challenge for us. We’ve run this Manchester City side close on both occasions that I’ve personally competed against them with this team.
“The plan will be to make it extremely hard for them and to take them to places where they don’t want to go. We don’t want to go into the game – because of what’s happened so far this season – with any fear around the place.
“We need to have belief and confidence and make it as hard as we can for them. When the time comes to show our quality, like we have done against Manchester City last year when we had an opportunity in the final minutes with young Carney (Chukwuemeka), to snatch something.
“We know we can hurt this team. We’re looking forward to the game.”
Villa under Gerrard
16:48 , Michael Jones
Since March Aston Villa have won just three of their 16 league games with three draws and 10 defeats in that run. They have lost half of their 32 top-flight fixtures under Steven Gerrard.
His top-flight record in charge of Villa is 11 wins, five draws and 16 defeats.
Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola says too much expected of striker Erling Haaland
16:43 , Michael Jones
Pep Guardiola believes that unrealistic expectations are already being made of Erling Haaland after scoring consecutive Premier League hat-tricks.
The Manchester City striker hit three inside 38 minutes against Nottingham Forest on Wednesday night, just days after a second-half hat-trick earned the champions a 4-2 comeback victory over Crystal Palace.
Haaland has scored nine goals in his first five Premier League games - a top-flight record - and is the first player in the post-1992 era to score nine times in August alone.
Pep Guardiola says already too much expected of Erling Haaland
City of fire
16:39 , Michael Jones
Manchester City’s haul of 19 goals is their highest after five games of a league season.
They are vying to score multiple goals in a 15th successive Premier League fixture, which would equal the record set by Liverpool in 2019.
Aston Villa vs Man City team changes
16:35 , Michael Jones
Steven Gerrard makes just one change to the Aston Villa team that lined-up against Arsenal last time out. Emiliano Buendia is replaced with Douglas Luiz.
Pep Guardiola also make just one change as Kevin de Bruyne returns at the expense of Julien Alvarez.
Aston Villa vs Man City line-ups
16:30 , Michael Jones
Aston Villa XI: Martinez, Cash, Konsa, Mings, Digne, McGinn, Kamara, Douglas Luiz, Ramsey, Watkins, Bailey
This is your Aston Villa team to face Manchester City. 👊#AVLMCI pic.twitter.com/b7EYtvwwEz
— Aston Villa (@AVFCOfficial) September 3, 2022
Man City XI: Ederson, Walker, Dias, Stones, Cancelo, Rodri, Gundogan, De Bruyne, Bernardo, Foden, Haaland
🔵 TEAM NEWS 🔵
XI | Ederson, Walker, Dias, Stones, Cancelo, Rodrigo, Gundogan (C), De Bruyne, Bernardo, Foden, Haaland
SUBS | Ortega Moreno, Ake, Grealish, Alvarez, Gomez, Mahrez, Palmer, Lewis, Wilson-Esbrand#ManCity | @HaysWorldwide pic.twitter.com/kgMUtweBtA— Manchester City (@ManCity) September 3, 2022
Dendoncker on joining Villa
16:27 , Michael Jones
New Aston Villa signing Leander Dendoncker spoke about how it feels to make the move across from Wolverhampton Wanderers.
“I’m very excited to have signed for Villa,” he said. “It’s a new challenge for me. I’m really excited to be here and I’ve already been shown around the training ground.
“I can feel that this a big club, you can just feel it. I obviously know the players from playing against them, and I know it’s a very good team with good players.
“I’m really happy to be here.”
Villa’s terrible form
16:23 , Michael Jones
Defeat would see Villa lose five of their opening six top-flight matches for the first time since 1986/87, a season which saw them finish bottom.
They have lost 13 Premier League games in 2022, a tally exceeded only by Everton’s 15 defeats
Guardiola on Haaland
16:18 , Michael Jones
Manchester City boss, Pep Guardiola, is thrilled with Erling Haaland’s desire to score goals after the striker netted back-to-bakc hat-tricks in the Premier League.
Have a watch at Guardiola praising Haaland’s clinical ability.
Gerrard on deadline day signings
16:13 , Michael Jones
Aston Villa were active right to the end of the transfer window and brought in Leander Dendoncker and Jan Bednarek on deadline day.
At his pre-match press conference Villa boss Steven Gerrard spoke about what each player brings to the team.
“Both players bring vital Premier League experience and international experience. They bring profile into the team and stature, which I think we need.” he said,
“I’m hoping they bring a real positive energy that is needed at the moment. Hopefully they’ll give the current group some help and support that is very much needed in view of our recent results.
“I’m delighted to get them in. It was a challenge in both situations because they were very much in demand. So for them to choose Aston Villa and come to play for us is important.
“The work behind the scenes to get them done was crucial, so well done to those people as well.”
Aston Villa vs Man City
16:09 , Michael Jones
Aston Villa are winless in their last 11 top-flight meetings with Manchester City - one draw, 10 defeats - losing each of the last seven by an aggregate score of 22-5.
City have won 14 of their last 16 league games against Villa - one draw, one loss - their only defeat in this run was a 3-2 defeat at Villa Park in September 2013.
The champions have won 28 Premier League games against the Villans - against no side do they have a better record.
Frank Lampard adamant Virgil van Dijk should have been sent off in Everton’s draw with Liverpool
16:04 , Michael Jones
Frank Lampard criticised the officials for not sending Virgil van Dijk off in the Merseyside derby for a foul on Amadou Onana that he felt was a dangerous tackle.
The Liverpool centre-back was cautioned for a foul on the Everton summer signing in the 0-0 draw at Goodison Park but Lampard was surprised at referee Anthony Taylor’s decision and more surprised VAR Darren England did not intervene to dismiss the Dutchman.
And Lampard, who is aggrieved his players were criticised for time-wasting this week, felt Everton would have had a greater chance of recording a first win of the season if Liverpool had been reduced to 10 men for the last 20 minutes.
Lampard adamant Van Dijk should have seen red Merseyside derby
Aston Villa vs Man City early team news
16:00 , Michael Jones
Aston Villa will monitor new signing Leander Dendoncker who has a sore throat but Jan Bednarek is available following his loan move from Southampton.
Diego Carlos is a long-term absentee as he recovers from a torn Achilles.
Jack Grealish and Nathan Ake are back in training for Man City could feature but Kalvin Phillips is recovering from a shoulder problem.
Manuel Akanji, who has signed from Borussia Dortmund on deadline day, is unlikely to start but may play a part later on.
Half-time scores
15:56 , Michael Jones
Following Everton and Liverpool’s goalless draw in the Merseyside derby earlier today there are six Premier League fixtures currently in action.
At half-time Brentford, Nottingham Forest, Tottenham and Wolves all have leads. Here’s how those matches stand:
Brentford 2-1 Leeds
Chelsea 0-0 West Ham
Newcastle 0-0 Crystal Palace
Nottingham Forest 2-0 Bournemouth
Tottenham 1-0 Fulham
Wolves 1-0 Southampton
Aston Villa vs Manchester City
15:53 , Michael Jones
Tonight’s late kick off sees Pep Guardiola’s Man City travel to Aston Villa looking to finish the day at the top of the Premier League table.
They’ll do so if they beat Steven Gerrard’s struggling side and it looks as though it’s going to be a tough outing for the Villans. They’re up against Erling Haaland who already has nine goals in five games since joining City and will be hoping to add to that tally before the Champions League starts this week.
That said, Guardiola may elect to rest his star striker with an eye on the the European group stages in a few days time. We’ll find out if Haaland starts in the not too distant future.
Jordan Pickford heroics deny Liverpool to ensure deserved derby point for Everton
14:52 , Michael Jones
Four months after Jurgen Klopp was closing in on the quadruple, he has a less prestigious quartet. The German remains unbeaten at Goodison Park but a fourth goalless draw across Stanley Park of his reign meant that, winless as they remain, Everton emerged with more credit from the 241st Merseyside derby than Liverpool.
A game of 36 shots was far more dramatic than the scoreline suggested. It had everything but the goal, with one disallowed, the woodwork rattled four times and a quite brilliant performance by Jordan Pickford. His meetings with Liverpool have featured harrowing errors and a terrible injury to Virgil van Dijk. This time Pickford traded the role of villain for that of hero, with an extraordinary save from Darwin Nunez, a very fine one from Roberto Firmino and an invaluable injury-time stop to thwart Mohamed Salah, while the Dutchman may have been fortunate to avoid a red card for a challenge on Amadou Onana. If controversy can be a constant in such fixtures, along with an Everton wait for a home win that now dates back to 2010, Liverpool could be concerned by more recent trends.
Nine points have escaped their grasp already this season and, while they mounted a second-half onslaught, a new habit of slow starts is impeding them. At least this time they avoided conceding the first goal in a game, albeit because there were none.
Jordan Pickford heroics deny Liverpool to ensure deserved derby point for Everton
FT Everton 0-0 Liverpool
14:41 , Michael Jones
Liverpool defender Virgil van Dijk says that Liverpool should have won the game telling BT Sport: “Obviously they had a couple of opportunities and an offside goal. They had two good saves from Alisson, I think we had a little more [chances] than that. We should have won in my opinion. It feels like we lost two points.
“We wanted to stay calm. They wanted to be aggressive, feed the crowd. We had to keep our cool and play quickly from side to side, because the spaces were so massive between the lines. Sometimes we did that, sometimes we didn’t and created unnecessary problems.
“We changed system a little bit [at half-time] but it’s still the same principles. At times it went well, but at times we could have done better. It feels like we lost points here, but it’s still early in the season. We have to stick together, focus on winning games and take it step by step.
“A clean sheet also wasn’t a bad thing at this stage.”
FT Everton 0-0 Liverpool
14:37 , Michael Jones
Post-match reaction from Everton’s Jordan Pickford who told BT Sport: “We didn’t get the three points but we got the draw and can start building now.
“I made some good saves, Alisson made some good saves, but that’s our job. It’s my first clean sheet of the season and another building block for the team to get better.
“We have four points from four draws, but if we keep building we will get stronger and get the wins.”
FT Everton 0-0 Liverpool
14:33 , Michael Jones
It was a day for the goalkeepers at Goodison Park as neither team could break the the defences of Jordan Pickford or Alisson Becker.
Full-time: Everton 0-0 Liverpool
14:26 , Michael Jones
90+7 mins: There’s the full-time whistle. The game ends all square.
It’s been an entertaining nil-nil but a nil-nil nonetheless. Jordan Pickford and Alisson Becker were both exceptional in goal and they needed to be.
The points are shared at Goodison Park.
Everton 0-0 Liverpool
14:24 , Michael Jones
90+5 mins: Off the post!
Liverpool fly through the pitch quickly and work the ball to Salah in the box. He shoots and Pickford gets a touch to turn it onto the post!
The ball come sback to Salah and he turns it wide with the follow-up.
Everton 0-0 Liverpool
14:22 , Michael Jones
90+3 mins: Liverpool throw men into the box and Tarkowski gets in a block from Salah’s left-footed effort. The Reds want a penalty but the referee lets play go on.
Everton 0-0 Liverpool
14:19 , Michael Jones
90 mins: Six minutes of added time to play.
Everton fly forward on the counter-attack and set up a three-on-three. Liverpool are scrambling to get back and Milner misses out in an attempted tackle of Dwight McNeil.
McNeil gives the ball to Gray who shoots but can’t beat Alisson.
Everton 0-0 Liverpool
14:16 , Michael Jones
86 mins: Save! Mo Salah collects the ball just outside the box and flicks it in with the outside of his left boot. It’s a perfect pass for Roberto Firmino who turns the ball towards goal with his first touch and forces Jordan Pickford into a leaping save to his right.
Pickford has to stretch to get there but his strong right hand keeps the ball out. How crucial will that stop prove to be?
Everton 0-0 Liverpool
14:12 , Michael Jones
83 mins: Dwight McNeil replaces Anthony Gordon for Everton. It’s the home side who are pushing at the minute. They’re probing down the right side before switching the ball over to Iwobi on the left.
Liverpool can’t get on the ball. Maupay and McNeil combine to get into the box and McNeil curls one at goal. Alisson leaps up and tips it over the crossbar!
Good save.
Everton 0-0 Liverpool
14:08 , Michael Jones
80 mins: Darwin Nunez and Harvey Elliott are hooked off by Jurgen Klopp with Diogo Jota and Joel Matip brought on. That means there are changes in position for Joe Gomez who moves to right back and James Milner who is brought into midfield.
10 minutes to go, will there be a winning goal?
Everton 0-0 Liverpool
14:07 , Michael Jones
77 mins: Van Dijk is given a yellow card and Everton win a free kick. Demarai Gray puts it into the box and Fabinho heads it away. Tarkowski stays up the pitch and wins a corner off Milner as Everton whip the ball back in.
The corner comes in from Gray but Fabinho is up there to head it clear.
Everton 0-0 Liverpool
14:04 , Michael Jones
74 mins: Everton sense that Liverpool are there for the taking. James Miner looks uncharacteristically shaky at right-back and there are spaces in and around the Reds’ final third.
A Liverpool counter-attack almost pays off but Diaz’s final ball to slip Andy Robertson into the area is poor and Patterson intercepts.
NO GOAL! Everton 0-0 Liverpool
14:00 , Michael Jones
71 mins: Disallowed goal! It’s an extremely close call but Coady is judged to have just been offside as Maupay slid the ball into the six-yard box.
It’s a matter of inches but the goal is chalked off.
GOAL! Everton 1-0 Liverpool (Coady, 69’)⚽️
13:57 , Michael Jones
69 mins: Conor Coady scores for Everton! Demarai Gray swings a cross in from the right wing and finds Neal Maupay on the opposite side of the penalty area.
Maupay drives the ball across the face of goal as James Milner lunges in for a tackle. Coady is wide open and taps the ball into the back of the net.
But, is he offside? VAR is going to check.
Everton 0-0 Liverpool
13:55 , Michael Jones
66 mins: Chance! Oh Everton should be in front. After Pickford’s heroics they fly up the pitch on the counter-attack and Neal Maupay is played in on goal.
He’s just got Alisson to beat but goes for power and blasts it at the Liverpool goalkeeper who keeps it out with a body block.
Everton 0-0 Liverpool
13:53 , Michael Jones
65 mins: Save! An Everton corner is cleared by Van Dijk and Liverpool drive up the pitch. Milner whips a long ball across to Diaz who guides it into the box for Nunez.
Nunez drops it down to Firmino who shoots and forces Pickford into a sharp save to his right.
Pickford is called into action again from the corner as Firmino has another effort guided towards the bottom corner. The Everton goalkeeper keeps it out but Van Dijk recycles the ball.
He flicks it to Diaz who lays a pass off to Fabinho. Fabinho turns a shot towards goal but Pickford is well positioned to turn it away once more!
Brilliant goalkeeping from the Everton man.
Everton 0-0 Liverpool
13:50 , Michael Jones
62 mins: Idrissa Gana Gueye returns for Everton. He’s a popular figure at Goodison Park thanks to his previous stint at the club and Frank Lampard brings him on with just under 30 minutes of this derby to go. Tom Davies is the man replaced.
Everton 0-0 Liverpool
13:47 , Michael Jones
59 mins: Patterson puts the ball behind for a Liverpool corner that Tsimikas curls in toward Van Dijk. He wins the header but knocks it straight out of play.
Jurgen Klopp decides to make a double change now. Trent Alexander-Arnold and Tsimikas are both taken off with James Milner and Andy Robertson brought on.
Everton 0-0 Liverpool
13:45 , Michael Jones
57 mins: There’s a scrap between Alex Iwobi and Harvey Elliott in midfield with the Everton man winning the battle. He comes away with the ball and scoots inside of Fabinho before having a shy at goal from a long way out.
The shot isn’t good and Alisson watches it fly wide of the far post
Everton 0-0 Liverpool
13:43 , Michael Jones
54 mins: Darwin Nunez drops into midfield to help Liverpool amount defensively before receiving the ball. He slides it down the right wing and makes a run back into his more central position.
Salah collects the ball out wide and drives up towards the penalty area before delivering a lacklustre cross. The ball hits Conor Coady and deflects nicely to Nunez who shoots but doesn’t trouble Jordan Pickford.
Everton 0-0 Liverpool
13:38 , Michael Jones
51 mins: Everton are living dangerously at the start of this half. Liverpool work it into the box again with Nunez and Firmino both throwing themselves at the ball.
Everton scramble to clear it but the ball bobbles to Tsimikas on the left side. He’s got a really narrow angle to shoot from and lets fly but his effort continues to rise and heads over the crossbar.
Everton 0-0 Liverpool
13:36 , Michael Jones
48 mins: Kostas Tsimikas slides the ball down the left wing where Luis Diaz is bombing into space. He brings the ball under control carries up to the box before sliding a pass into Darwin Nunez.
Nunez attempts to turn it towards goal with his first touch but scuffs the shot and sends it well wide of goal.
Second half: Everton 0-0 Liverpool
13:33 , Michael Jones
Kick off: Jurgen Klopp has made a change for Liverpool bringing on Roberto Firmino in place of Fabio Carvalho. That probably means a change in formation too leaving the Reds with just Harvey Elliott and Fabinho in midfield.
No changes for Everton.
HT Everton 0-0 Liverpool
13:30 , Michael Jones
Darwin Nunez can become the second player to score in both of his first two Premier League away appearances for Liverpool, emulating Jan Molby in August 1992.
He’s already hit the crossbar in the first 45 minutes of this one.
HT Everton 0-0 Liverpool
13:26 , Michael Jones
Everton have won just one of their last 23 Premier League meetings with Liverpool (D12 L10), winning 2-0 at Anfield in February 2021 under Carlo Ancelotti.
HT Everton 0-0 Liverpool
13:22 , Michael Jones
Everton 0-0 Liverpool
13:22 , Jack Rathborn
Half-time: Everton 0-0 Liverpool
13:18 , Michael Jones
45+2 mins: Everyone relax. There’s nothing to separate the teams as they head into the half-time break. It’s been a physical and entertaining encounter that has seen both teams hit the woodwork.
Liverpool need to get Mo Salah into the game more and be more disciplined in midfield. Everton will be delighted with those first 45 minutes.
They’ve taken the attack to the Reds and almost earned their reward.
Everton 0-0 Liverpool
13:15 , Michael Jones
45 mins: Both teams have hit the frame of the goal now and yet the match remains goalless. Kostas Tsimikas swings a corner into the middle and finds Virgil van Dijk but his headed effort is blocked by Tom Davies.
There’s going to be two minutes of added time to play in the first half.
Everton 0-0 Liverpool
13:14 , Michael Jones
43 mins: Off the woodwork!
Oh my days. Liverpool send the ball over the top and pick out Darwin Nunez in the box. He takes a touch and smokes an effort at goal only for Jordan Pickford to leap to his right and tip it onto the crossbar!
The ball rebounds out to Luis Diaz on the left side. He cuts back into the penalty are and shoots with his right foot. Diaz absolutely nails it and cracks the right hand post but the ball bounces back into play and gets cleared!
Everton 0-0 Liverpool
13:10 , Michael Jones
40 mins: Carvalho and Onana’s clash of knees keeps the midfielder on the floor but the physios have come on to check him over. Liverpool’s new signing Arthur Melo has been sent out to warm up but Carvalho seems okay to play on.
Chance! The set piece is swung in towards Fabinho who knocks the ball to Mo Salah. Salah lifts the ball back into the box where Darwin Nunez drives to the ball and heads his effort over the crossbar.
Everton 0-0 Liverpool
13:08 , Michael Jones
37 mins: Liverpool are just slowing the game down after that Everton chance. It’s been the best one of the game by far and the visitors are just trying to assert some control on the ball.
Amadou Onana arrives late on Fabio Carvalho and gives away a free kick. He also picks up the first yellow card of the match.
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