Aston Villa came from behind to beat Leeds United 2-1 at Elland Road, extending their unbeaten run against Leeds to six matches. Leeds felt the pressure after several relegation rivals picked up points the previous day, but they made a strong start and took the lead inside ten minutes.
It was a lucky goal, as Anton Stach returned a half-cleared free-kick into the box and Ezri Konsa’s attempted clearance bounced off Lukas Nmecha and rolled into the net. Villa offered very little in response, with an Emiliano Buendía free-kick that sailed over the bar their only early effort.
The match was scrappy and the poor weather made it difficult for either side to play fluently, but Leeds handled the conditions better. They looked more likely to score the next goal, although they struggled to create clear chances. Brenden Aaronson finally forced Emiliano Martínez into a save with a volley from the edge of the area. Villa created almost nothing until the final moments of the half, when Ollie Watkins curled a shot narrowly wide, reminding Leeds that the game was still there to be won.
Unai Emery was unhappy with Villa’s first-half showing and made two substitutions at the break. One of them made an immediate impact. Within three minutes, Donyell Malen sent in a dangerous cross and Morgan Rogers flicked it past Lucas Perri at the near post to bring Villa level. Malen continued to cause problems and almost put Villa ahead soon after when his left-footed strike took a deflection and went just wide.
The winning goal eventually came from Rogers once again. He has been vital for Villa this season and produced another big moment by curling a free-kick over the wall and into the net with Perri rooted to the spot. Leeds thought they had equalised moments later when Dominic Calvert-Lewin bundled in a cross from Dan James, but the goal was ruled out for handball. Leeds pushed for another chance, but they struggled to break Villa down. Their final opportunity came from Pascal Struijk’s header, which Martínez saved comfortably.
Villa held on to secure three important points, lifting them back into the top four for the time being. A draw would have taken Leeds out of the relegation zone, but they were unable to find the late goal they needed.
