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Konsa sees red as Aston Villa hold on for goalless draw against Newcastle United

Despite being reduced to 10 men in the second half, Aston Villa held on to secure a 0-0 draw against Newcastle United in their Premier League (PL) opener, extending their unbeaten home run in the competition to 22 matches in the procedure.

All of the talk surrounding Newcastle in the summer has centred around the future of wantaway striker Alexander Isak and their own inability to recruit a successor.

That was keenly felt in the first half here, as despite dominating the contest and creating a number of chances, Eddie Howe’s men were lacking a clinical edge.

The visitors ought to have been in the lead inside three minutes when new signing Anthony Elagna raced through on goal after a Villa defensive mix-up, but when the Swede eventually pulled the trigger, debuting goalkeeper Marco Bizot preserved parity for the hosts with a smart save.

Elanga and stand-in striker Anthony Gordon fired in seven shots between them before the break, with Gordon forcing Bizot into another sharp stop with a low drive from the edge of the area.

Villa were some way off the pace throughout the opening 45 minutes, completing just 73% of their passes and failing to register a single shot of any description to leave the home faithful frustrated at the interval, even if their side were fortunate to remain on level terms.

It’s the first time since March 2022 that Villa had reached half-time without having a shot in a PL match, but they needed less than two minutes following the restart to finally threaten when John McGinn’s cross found Boubacar Kamara, who headed straight at Nick Pope.

Chances were soon at a premium as these two sides – separated only by goal difference last season – showed once again there was very little to split them.

That looked set to change when Gordon was released behind the Villa defence by Elanga, prompting Ezri Konsa to haul him to the ground and duly receive a straight red card for the denial of a goalscoring opportunity.

Unai Emery’s side prepared to face a late barrage of pressure, but the Magpies’ lack of a focal point up front undermined their efforts and ultimately meant the spoils were shared on the opening weekend.

It’s just the second time that Newcastle have avoided defeat in seven PL visits to Villa Park, though it ends a run of three successive victories on the opening day.

Isak’s absence helped Villa keep just a third clean sheet in 12 home league games, though opposite number Ollie Watkins’ first blank in five PL home matches against Newcastle epitomised a frustrating day for both sides.

Betopick Man of the Match: Anthony Elanga (Newcastle United)Key stats from the matchOpta by StatsPerformClick here to catch up on the match.