Source: Liverpool_Echo
Everton FC 1 Aston Villa 1 - final whistle match report
EVERTON drew their third successive home game 1-1 as John Carew came off the bench to equalise at Goodison Park.[LNB]Diniyar Bilyaletdinov had opened the scoring for the hosts in first-half stoppage time, but Carew - who had replaced Emile Heskey at half-time - made it 1-1 within two minutes of the restart.[LNB]Both teams finished the match with 10 men after Bilyaletdinov and then Carlos Cuellar were given their marching orders late on by referee Lee Probert.[LNB]Everton made three changes to their first XI for the visit of Aston Villa in the Barclays Premier League this afternoon, with Leighton Baines, Joseph Yobo and Diniyar Bilyaletdinov all restored to the starting line-up after recovering from injury.[LNB]Louis Saha dropped to the bench after picking up a calf problem, as did Dan Gosling, but there was no place in the squad for Tony Hibbert.[LNB]Brad Friedel was named in goal for Villa to make his 200th consecutive league appearance after Brad Guzan had deputised at Sunderland in the Carling Cup on Tuesday, while Steve Sidwell returned to the midfield in place of Nigel Reo-Coker.[LNB]Emile Heskey, who had made his first start since August at the Stadium of Light, retained his starting spot with John Carew on the bench once again, and Stephen Warnock was included in the defence despite suffering an ankle injury in the week.[LNB]Everton and Villa matched each other all the way until the final weeks of last season in the race for fifth place in the table and again, there was little to divide the two teams in the opening stages.[LNB]Sidwell wasted the first real opportunity of the game in the fifth minute, misdirecting his header across Tim Howard's goal after Ashley Young's cross had picked him out.[LNB]Minutes later Ayegbeni Yakubu sent a cross into the Villa box which looked like it might dip under the bar, but the ever-reliable Friedel was on hand to tip it over.
