Mueez Ajao
– Aston Villa increased the pressure on Tottenham manager Antonio Conte with victory at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
– An error by goalkeeper Hugo Lloris in his first game back since the World Cup allowed Emiliano Buendia to score before Douglas Luiz doubled the lead.
– A lacklustre Spurs, who fell out of the Premier League top four on Saturday, have now won only two of their past seven matches.
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– Villa have won back-to-back away league games as they improve under Unai Emery.
– It appeared this contest would pit the two keepers who faced off in the 2022 World Cup final penalty shootout against each other, but Argentina’s spot-kick hero Emiliano Martinez had to settle for a place on the Villa bench.
– It was a poor match all round for returning finalists. Spurs’ World Cup-winning defender Cristian Romero was shown a yellow card in the first half – and fortunate not to get a second late on after barging Philippe Coutinho – while Lloris endured a shocking moment in the 50th minute.
– He spilled Luiz’s long-range effort and Ollie Watkins squared the rebound for Buendia to slam home.
– Luiz started and finished the move for 2-0, sliding a pass to John McGinn before racing on to receive the return and chipping cutely past Lloris.
– Spurs were booed off at the final whistle, while some fans directed angry chants directed towards chairman Daniel Levy.
A superb way to start the year for @AVFCOfficial 👏#TOTAVL pic.twitter.com/mdUpiEiwik
— Premier League (@premierleague) January 1, 2023
