Ollie Watkins became Aston Villa's all-time leading Premier League goalscorer as they boosted their UEFA Champions League hopes with a 1-0 win at AFC Bournemouth, whose own European ambitions suffered a setback.
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Watkins prodded Morgan Rogers' cross home deep into first-half stoppage time for his 75th Premier League goal for the club – one more than Gabriel Agbonlahor managed.
Villa had Jacob Ramsey sent off for his second bookable offence in the 80th minute, but a combination of Emiliano Martinez and Matty Cash denied Bournemouth a dramatic stoppage-time equaliser.
The win takes Villa above Nottingham Forest and into sixth place, only behind Newcastle United and Chelsea, who face each other on Sunday, on goal difference.
Bournemouth, meanwhile, stay 10th, two points behind Brentford and Brighton & Hove Albion, with their hopes of European qualification taking a major blow.
| Position Pos | Club | Played Pl | GD | Points Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 |
Arsenal
ARS
|
38 | +35 | 74 |
| 3 |
Man City
MCI
|
38 | +28 | 71 |
| 4 |
Chelsea
CHE
|
38 | +21 | 69 |
| 5 |
Newcastle
NEW
|
38 | +21 | 66 |
| 6 |
Aston Villa
AVL
|
38 | +7 | 66 |
| 7 |
Nott'm Forest
NFO
|
38 | +12 | 65 |
| 8 |
Brighton
BHA
|
38 | +7 | 61 |
| 9 |
Bournemouth
BOU
|
38 | +12 | 56 |
| 10 |
Brentford
BRE
|
38 | +9 | 56 |
How the match unfolded
Bournemouth dominated possession for much of the opening period, but Villa came on strong at the end of the first half, with Marco Asensio striking the base of a post.
Kepa Arrizabalaga made a stunning save from Boubacar Kamara's header, then held Cash's follow-up, but he was given no chance in the sixth minute of first-half stoppage time, as Watkins flicked Rogers' cross home, with the goal confirmed after a VAR check for offside.
Kamara dragged a left-footed shot wide soon after half-time, but Villa's hopes were endangered when Ramsey, having already been booked for dissent, clipped David Brooks with 10 minutes to play and was sent off.
Antoine Semenyo drilled wide as Bournemouth desperately sought an equaliser, while Martinez acrobatically kept out Evanilson's close-range header.
One final chance fell Bournemouth's way in stoppage time, but Martinez got a touch to Semenyo's bouncing effort and Cash heroically nodded the ball away from the goalline to secure the points.
Bournemouth's European hopes fading
Bournemouth came into this fixture following their victory at Arsenal last week, but the pressure was on after wins for fellow European hopefuls Brentford and Brighton earlier on Saturday.
Having dropped to 10th in the table, and with a tricky trip to Manchester City next up, Andoni Iraola's side had little margin for error.
Their hopes of a quick start were frustrated as Alex Scott went down with a head injury, having collided with the flailing elbow of Tyrone Mings. While Scott was able to continue, the long stoppage led to six minutes of added time in which Villa found their goal.
Bournemouth had received a blow this week as Dango Ouattara was sidelined by an adductor injury, and his replacement in the starting line-up, Semenyo, lost possession in the build-up to Villa's goal after being hemmed in by four white shirts.
Whatever Iraola said at half-time failed to have the desired effect, as Bournemouth did not attempt a shot between the 27th and 69th minute.
A rare positive burst from Brooks drew Ramsey's second yellow card and put Villa on the back foot, but Bournemouth's clinical touch deserted them at 11 v 10.
The race for eighth and potential European qualification is now out of Bournemouth's hands, as even maximum points against Man City and Leicester City may not be enough.
Watkins secures vital victory
Watkins has not been shy in outlining his frustration at having lost his place as a guaranteed starter, having had competition from Marcus Rashford before the Manchester United loanee suffered a hamstring injury last month.
Watkins had only started four of Villa's last 10 matches in all competitions prior to this trip to the south coast, but when selected by Unai Emery, he tends to repay the Spaniard's faith.
He showed his predatory instincts for the winner, darting ahead of Illia Zabarnyi to divert Rogers' cross into the bottom-left corner with a delicate touch, surpassing Agbonlahor's Premier League haul.
While Watkins' finish was excellent, the chance came about thanks to superb vision and execution from Rogers, who dropped his cross out of Kepa's reach and into his striker's path.
Having lost standout midfielder Youri Tielemans to injury, Villa also needed big performances from Kamara and Amadou Onana, and the duo succeeded in turning the second half into a scrappy affair, denying Bournemouth any momentum.
Like Bournemouth, Villa may need help from elsewhere to realise their European aspirations, given their goal difference is vastly inferior to those of Newcastle and Chelsea.
But with Tottenham Hotspur and Man Utd to play, either side of those teams facing off in the UEFA Europa League final, Villa will be confident of a strong finish.
Club reports
Bournemouth report | Villa report
What the managers said
Andoni Iraola: "I think the game has gone more similar to the one they wanted to play. I think in the first half it was a lot of stop and go and not a lot of rhythm. It hasn't been enough for us. Overall I think they managed better. We haven't been able to punish them."
Unai Emery: "The players compete very well. It's difficult here because Bournemouth are performing fantastic. I told the players we needed to focus for 90 minutes and injury time. Don't watch the result or the time because we need to focus. If we can score the second goal even better. We needed the defence, the clean sheet was very important."
Remaining PL fixtures
Key facts
Bournemouth have lost five of their last seven Premier League home games (W1 D1), with their previous five defeats at the Vitality Stadium coming over a 25-game spell (W13 D7).
Villa have won seven of their last eight Premier League games (L1), with the Villans earning more points since the start of March than any other side (21).
Rogers and Watkins have combined for seven Premier League goals for Villa this season, the second-highest tally of any duo after Jacob Murphy and Alexander Isak (8).
There were 21 cards issued in the two meetings between Bournemouth and Aston Villa this season (20 yellows, 1 red), the most in a fixture in a single campaign in Premier League history.