Source: TheGuardian
Aston Villa 1-1 Hull City: Championship – as it happened
Gabby Agbonlahor and Jarrod Bowen scored the goals as the sides’ shared the spoils at Villa Park in a proverbial game of two halves 7.44pm BST Read Nick Miller’s match report from Villa Park: Related: Hull City equaliser denies John Terry a winning start with Aston Villa 7.25pm BST It finishes all square at Villa Park, where the hosts took a seventh minute lead through Gabby Agbonlahor and dominated the second half. Hull City showed good character to turn things around after half-time and equalised through Jarrod Bowen. Villa substitute Andre Green will lie awake tonight wondering how he didn’t win the match for his team with a late header that missed a practically open goal. 7.22pm BST 90+3 min: Hull go forward, but look happy to settle for a point. They’ve done well to turn this game around but their squad is threadbare and they’ll need new recruits. 7.21pm BST 90+2 min: Villa continue their search for a late, late winner that they probably just about deserve on the balance of play over the 90 minutes. 7.19pm BST 90 min: Villa substitution: Henri Lansbury off, Chris Samba on. The giant veteran is going to be thrown up front. Hull substitution: Kamil Grosicki off, James Weir on. 7.17pm BST 89 min: Villa are finishing the stronger of the two sides ... but you don’t care because you’re getting ready to watch Usain Bolt. Aren’t you? 7.16pm BST 88 min: Lansbury crosses into the penalty area and John Terry gets the flick-on ... oh, so close. But the offside flag was up. 7.15pm BST 86 min: The match enters its knockings, although I suspect there’ll be five or six minutes of added time. Villa win a free-kick a long way out from the Hull goal, wide on the left. Lansbury and Green try a training ground move that doesn’t quite come off, but Villa keep the pressure on. 7.12pm BST 83 min: Sustained pressure from Villa, but they can’t find a winner. They’re finishing this second half a lot more strongly than they began it. This match is hanging in the balance and could go either way. 7.10pm BST 81 min: Having given his marker the slip at the back post, Andre Green misses a glorious opportunity to put Villa back in front, heading into the turf and watching the ball bounce over the bar from a few yards out when half the goal was gaping. He’ll lose sleep over that one - it was an astonishing miss. 7.09pm BST 77 min: Free-kick for Aston Villa, a fair way out. Nothing comes of it. Aston Villa susbtitution: Josh Onomah on for Scott Hogan. WE now have loanees from Chelsea (x2), Manchester United and Tottenham on the pitch. Speaking of John Terry, his presence at Villa speaks volumes about the fall of Micah Richards, who is still at the club and made three appearances for them last season. It must be a huge embarrassment for him that he can’t get in the Villa squad, while a 36 year old has been drafted in as captain. Still, the money’s probably good. 7.04pm BST 74 min: Those substitutions seem to have slowed the game down a bit, allowing Aston Villa back into the game. They win a free-kick wide on the ride and the ball’s sent into the mixer from deep. On Sky Sports, Don Goodman on co-comms makes the point that John Terry is being marked at the far post buy Ola Aina, which is a total mismatch. The Sky cameras keep cutting to Terry, to see what sort of shape he’s in as the game approaches it’s final 15 minutes. He looks no more out of breath than anyone else out there. He’s had a solid, if unspectacular debut for Villa so far, which is what he’s there for. 7.01pm BST 73 min: Meyler clashes with Green and the result is a free-kick wide on the left for Villa. Nothing comes of it. 7.00pm BST 70 min: Hull substitution: David Meyler on for Fraizer Campbell, who looks to have picked up a knock. Villa substitution: Andre Green on for Leandro Bacuna. Steve Bruce switches to a 4-4-2 with Green on the left wing and Elmohamady on the right. Gabby Agbonlahor has dropped in just behind Scott Hogan. 6.57pm BST 68 min: Hull continue to dominate, a team transformed from their first half travails. They’re more direct and have upped the tempo. Villa don’t know what’s hit them. 6.55pm BST 65 min: Glenn Whelan is very lucky to avoid a second yellow card with a late challenge on the goalscorer Bowen. Very lucky indeed. It was late and he caught Bowen on the instep - a nasty one that would almost certainly have earned him a yellow if he wasn’t already on one. 6.53pm BST 63 min: As I said just a few moments ago, that goal was no more than Hull deserved. Fraizer Campbell picked up the ball in midfield and ran directly at the Villa defence, towards the edge of the penalty area. He ran into a thicket of defenders, but had a stroke of luck when the ball broke out right to Grosicki. His cross was wonderful, taking out three Villa defenders and the unmarked Bowen volleyed a low, diagonal effort home from the corner of the six-yard box. 6.50pm BST It’s all square at Villa Park, where Jarrod Bowen has volleyed his side level from six yards. 6.48pm BST 60 min: Certainly better than my Russian. ? ?? ??????, ??? ?????? ??????? ?????? ????? ??????? ? ????????, ?? ???? ???????? ? ??? ????. ??? ????? ???? ?? ?????, ??????? ?????? ????????? ?? ?????? ???? ? ??????? ??????? ????? ?????? ????????. ? ??????? - ???? ? ???????????? ???????? ?????? ???? ???-?? ???, ?? ????? ?????? ? ????? ?????????? ????????. ??? ?????????? ????? ?????. 6.47pm BST 56 min: I’m not sure what Leonid Slutsky said to his players at half-time, but Hull are right back in this game. They’re taking the game to Villa now having been on the back foot for most of the first half. As an aside - if the Russian’s pre-match interview was anything to go by, he’s been studying hard in his daily classes. His English is very good. 6.43pm BST 54 min: Abel Hernandez unleashes an ambitious shot from distance that isn’t too far away. The travelling Hull City fans strike up a chorus of “Hernandez! Woah-oh!” in a show of appreciation. 6.41pm BST 54 min: Play resumes after Henriksen returns to his feet, walks to the sideline counting his teeth and comes back on. 6.40pm BST 50 min: A sustained period of pressure on Villa by Hull. They win another corner, prompting Michaels Dawson and Hector to lumber forward. Scott Hogan wins the ball deep in his own half and sprints upfield on the counter-attack. Hull win the ball back after Henricksen wins an aerial duel with Lansbury and embark on a counter-counter-attack. Henricksen goes down holding his face, but play continues. When the move breaks down, the phsysio comes on to treat the central midfielder. 6.37pm BST 48 min: Hull win a corner, which Jarrod Bowen drills into the penalty area, low and hard. The ball pings around until it breaks to Bowen off Terry to Bowen, whose shot is blocked. A bit of hope for Hull, there. 6.35pm BST 46 min: Play resumes at Villa Park, with the home side kicking off. A foul by Hector on Lansbury out by the touchline gives Villa a free in a dangerous position. John Terry and James Chester come up from the back and Neil Taylor sends the ball into the mixer. There’s a huge penalty shout when Ola Aina handles, but it’s correctly ruled to have been accidental. 6.20pm BST The players troop off for the break, but the scoreline scarcely does Villa’s dominance justice. They’ve been quicker, more inventive in their dominance of a game in which the sides are separated by Gabby Agbonlahor’s seventh-minute strike. They’ll win this match at a canter unless Hull City buck up their ideas up. 6.17pm BST 45+1 min: More good goalkeeping from Johnstone, who is quick off his line to authoritatively claim a long-throw from Ola Aina in a corwded penalty area. 6.16pm BST 44 min: In the Villa goal, Sam Johnstone pulls off successive saves to deny Frazier Campbell and Kamii Grosicki after Glenn Whelan had gifted possession to Hull City in midfield. Johnstone saved from Campbell with his feet and the ball broke to Grosicki, who saw his follow-up punched away by the loanee from Manchester United. 6.14pm BST 42 min: The match meanders towards half-time with Hull playing the ball backwards and sideways, but very rarely forwards. Abel Hernandez bucks the trend with a lightning fast snap-shot from the edge of the box that fizzes a few wide of the left upright. If he’d hit the target, that was a certain goal. 6.11pm BST 39 min: Villa appear for a penalty when Scott Hogan goes down in the box under a last-ditch challenge from young Ola Aina, who won the ball. None is forthcoming. Earlier, Glenn Whelan caught Kamii Grosicki with his leading arm as the duo contested the high ball. Having won a free-kick for himself, Grosicki helpfully pointed out that Whelan was on a yellow card and deserved another one, but the referee was having none of it. Nobody likes a grass. 6.08pm BST 36 min: It remains 1-0, with Villa dominant and Hull rather riding their luck. Villa have slowed things down and Hull look fairly bereft of ideas when it comes to creating chances. Still, there’s only the kick of a ball in it. 6.05pm BST 33 min: Good play from John Terry who wins the ball from Hernandez in midfield and plays it to Elmohamaday. The Egyptian winger tries to play Agbonlahor through on goal but overhits his pass. 6.04pm BST 6.03pm BST 32 min: So close! The ball’s crossed in from the right touchline and on the edge of the six-yard box, Scott Hogan doesn’t get quite the connection he was looking for but still gets a first-timer shot away. It’s hacked clear by Dawson for a corner but looked like it was going wide anyway. 6.02pm BST 30 min: Aston Villa continue to dominate, while Hull’s supporters continue to boo Ahmed Elmohamady as he runs up and down the right flank in front of the stand where they’re seated. He left Hull City for Villa during the summer, hooking up with his old buddy Steve Bruce for the third time. 5.58pm BST 27 min: Lansbury and Scott Hogan combine well outside the Hull penalty area and the striker shows some deft footwork to weave his way past two or three defenders and make his way towards goal. Allan McGregor comes out to dive at his feet and avert the danger. Impressive stuff from Hogan. 5.56pm BST 25 min: Henri Lansbury wins and takes a free-kick, sending the ball into the Villa penalty area. It’s cleared. 5.56pm BST 22 min: There’s a break in play as Sam Clucas receives treatment after a robust challenge by Glenn Whelan, which earns the Irishman a yellow card. The passage of play that led to the booking ended with Hull midfielder Kamii Grosicki shooting for the corner, bringing a save out of Villa goalkeeper Sam Johnstone. 5.52pm BST 19 min: Replays of Agbonlahor’s goal show he was completely unmarked as he ran on to Hutton’s cross and rifled the ball inside the left upright from the edge of the six-yard box. He went on to hold up a shirt wishing Wolves and Nigeria goalkeeper Carl Ikeme well. The 31-year-old, who has been with Wolves his entire career, has just been diagnosed with acute leukaemia. We wish him all the very best. 5.49pm BST 17 min: Henri Lansbury has just been booked for a late challenge on Michael Hector. 5.48pm BST 15 min: Hull finally start getting into a game they looked like letting get away from them in the early stages. They’re getting the collective foot on the ball and playing with a bit more composure. Slutsky looks to have lined his team up in a similar 4-2-3-1 to Bruce. Abel Hernandez is the lone striker in front of a three comprising Jarrod Bowen on the right, Kamii Grosicki on the left and Fraizer Campbell in the hole. Behind them, Markus Henriksen and Sam Clucas are on patrol in central midfield. 5.44pm BST 12 min: Hull left-back Michael Hector put his side in trouble with a dodgy back-pass, conceding a needless corner. The ball’s swung in and Scott Hogan shoots straight at Allan McGregor from about seven yards. 5.42pm BST 10 min: A throw-in for Villa, deep in Villa territory. Alan Hutton takes it and Hull hack clear. One suspects Agbonlahor will have to score more than a goal or two to wriggle his way back into the good books of Villa’s fans. A one-time fan favourite, he started just four games for the club last season and seems to have spent most of the past two seasons in a childish sulk. 5.40pm BST 8 min: Having fluffed his lines in a one-on-one against Allan McGregor after being put through on goal by Henri Lansbury moments previously, Gabby Agbonlahor fires Villa in front from close range after getting on the end of a cross from the right touchline from Alan Hutton. Hull City’s defence is looking very, very shaky in these early stages and with better finishing, Villa could conceivably have been three up after eight minutes. 5.37pm BST Gabby Agbonlahor puts Villa ahead moments after missing a really good chance. The home side lead and Hull’s defence is looking totally shambolic. 5.36pm BST 4 min: Gabby Agbonlahor, who we’re pleased to report is still alive and playing football for Aston Villa, catches Markus Henriksen with an elbow as the pair contests a high ball. The ref had a good view but doesn’t punish him. 5.35pm BST 3 min: Villa get an early chance when Henri Lansbury ghosts between central defenders Max Clark and Michael Dawson, chesting a ball from deep down and firing wide of the upright. An early scare for Hull City. 5.34pm BST 2 min: Villa line up in a 4-2-3-1 with Henri Lansbury and Glenn Whelan in central midfield between the back four and a three of Elmohamady on the right, Leandro Bacuna in the middle and Gabby Agbonlahor on the right. Scott Hogan has been tasked with filling Jonathan Kodija’s big boots up front. 5.31pm BST 1 min: Hull City kick off and Villa keeper Sam Johnstone gets an early touch. The sun is shining over Villa Park but one side of the pitch is in shadow. 5.30pm BST Not long now. John Terry and Michael Dawson lead their respective teams out to warm applause as I settle down to watch my third football match in less than 24 hours. Football’s back alright ... with a bang. The other two - Sunderland 1-1 Derby and Celtic 4-1 Hearts - have been more than decent, so here’s hoping for the hat-trick with this one. Kick-off is just moments away. 5.26pm BST Interesting fact: Hull City have made a £23m profit in the transfer market in the close season. I still think they’ve a half-decent side. I’m very curious to see how they’ll set up under Slutsky, who has used his Chelsea connections to bring Ola Aina and Michael Hector in on loan. 5.22pm BST After Sunderland drew 1-1 with Derby County and Nottingham Forest beat Millwall by the only game of the game last night, here are today’s results ... so far. 5.05pm BST Aston Villa: Johnstone, Hutton, Terry, Chester, Taylor, Whelan, Lansbury, Elmohamady, Bacuna, Agbonlahor, HoganSubs: Steer, Samba, Hourihane, Bree, Onomah, Green, Bjarnason 4.58pm BST Aston Villa striker Jonathan Kodija is still recovering from a broken ankle and could miss the first six week’s of Aston Villa’s season as he works his way back to full fitness. Jack Grealish is also out for three months after undergoing kidney surgery following a collision with Watford’s Tom Cleverley in a pre-season friendly against Watford last weekend. Mile Jedinak is also likely to be sidelined for two weeks with a groin strain. While John Terry is Villa’s most high profile new boy, Sam Johnstone, Glenn Whelan, Chris Samba and Ahmed Elmohamady could all feature. 4.39pm BST 4.34pm BST 2.45pm BST Aston Villa entertain Hull City in one of the more interesting fixtures in this opening weekend of the Championship. In a wide open field, the hosts are second favourites to be win the division, while their visitors are 16-1 outsiders despite having made a decent fist of trying to stay in the Premier League last season. Having signed on a free after his contract with Chelsea expired, John Terry will make his debut for Aston Villa this evening, but it’s Hull’s new manager I’m more interested in keeping an eye on. A former CSKA Moscow and Russia manager, Leonid Slutsky got the Hull City job in the wake of Marco Silva’s departure for Hull City. A pal of Roman Abramovic, the Russian had spent months previously living in the Stamford Bridge hotel while he immersed himself in English culture, learned the language and spent time watching football at all sorts of levels. Related: CSKA Moscow go Russian with Leonid Slutsky after foreign experiment fails | Jonathan Wilson Continue reading......read full article
