10-man Aston Villa hold out against Newcastle | OneFootball

Aston Villa and Newcastle United kicked off their Premier League campaigns with a goalless draw at Villa Park. Both managers will probably settle for a point - Villa having to dig in with ten men for much of the second half, and Newcastle forced to be content with their share away from home.

Newcastle sharper in attack

It were the Magpies who started the brighter. Within three minutes, Anthony Elanga slipped through on goal only to be denied by Marco Bizot, while Anthony Gordon’s follow-up strike was blocked.

The visitors were consistently lively down the flanks, with Harvey Barnes and Elanga combining well to stretch Villa’s back line. Fabian Schär twice tried his luck from distance, one effort sailing over and another veering wide, while Gordon had a powerful shot parried away by Bizot.

Villa, meanwhile, were slower to find rhythm but carried danger through Ollie Watkins’ movement. He did manage to find the net just before the half-hour, but the flag was up for offside.

The first half ended with tempers fraying after Joelinton was booked for a heavy challenge, one of several fouls that broke up the flow of the game.

Konsa’s red card slowed the tempo

Villa began the second half more assertively. Boubacar Kamara forced a header on target within minutes, saved by Nick Pope, while Watkins again tested the keeper with a left-footed effort from the heart of the box.

The turning point came on 66 minutes when Ezri Konsa picked up the season’s first Premier League red card.

The England international was shown his marching orders when he hauled down Anthony Gordon, who had broken free and was charging towards goal.

Harvey Barnes and Gordon both peppered the box with shots - one blocked, another sailing over - and substitute William Osula had an effort stopped inside stoppage time.

From distance, Schär had a couple of audacious cracks, the last of which whistled wide in the seventh added minute, but the breakthrough refused to arrive.

The whistle blew with neither side able to break the deadlock. All told, a point apiece felt about right - not spectacular, but a hard-fought start to the season for both clubs.