Aston Villa blow prime chance to go top of Premier League

The Blades ended Aston Villa’s 15-game home league winning streak on Saturday when substitute Nicolo Zaniolo’s goal late into stoppage time secured a 1-1 draw against Sheffield United.

After the draw, Villa stays in third place with 38 points, one behind leaders Arsenal, while Sheffield United moves up the league to 19th place with nine points, one ahead of bottom team Burnley.

Villa knew going into the game that a victory would put them atop the standings as the hectic Christmas season got underway, but they nearly lost it as Sheffield United seized the lead late on thanks to a strong defensive effort.

Up until Zaniolo’s late header, the home team controlled the game and had about 80% of the possession. However, they were frustrated by the Blades’ strong defensive block, which kept them from getting more than one shot on goal.

Vinicius Souza appeared to shove Villa striker Ollie Watkins in the back before he headed a cross behind, and the visitors were fortunate to avoid an early VAR review. They also avoided two further penalty reviews from the ensuing corner.

Wes Foderingham of Sheffield United made an incredible one-handed stop to keep Moussa Diaby out of the game in the eighteenth minute. Ezri Konsa had a chance to put Villa ahead four minutes later, but he couldn’t hold his header after a corner.

The Blades defended valiantly to set up a thrilling finale, and they gained another fortunate VAR decision on the hour mark when Leon Bailey’s goal for Villa was disallowed for a foul on goalkeeper Wes Foderingham.

After joining Villa from the Blades in August, Cameron Archer scored what appeared to be the game-winning goal in the 87th minute. However, Zaniolo scored in the seventh minute of stoppage time to give his team a point.

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