Villa Grind Out Victory Against Spirited Wolves
Aston Villa climbed to third place in the Premier League, momentarily moving within a point of Manchester City, after a hard-fought 1-0 victory over Wolverhampton Wanderers at Villa Park. The decisive moment came from an unlikely source, as midfielder Boubacar Kamara unleashed a spectacular left-footed strike to break Wolves' resistance and secure a seventh league win in eight matches for Unai Emery's side.
Wolves Dominate But Fail to Convert
Despite the final score, the match was far from one-sided. Wolves delivered what was arguably their finest performance of the season, creating a string of excellent chances. They thought they had taken an early lead, but Jørgen Strand Larsen's effort was ruled out for offside.
The visitors continued to press and came agonisingly close on the stroke of half-time. A powerful header from Yerson Mosquera was brilliantly tipped onto the crossbar by Villa goalkeeper Emiliano Martínez, who then scrambled the ball to safety in a moment of high drama.
Wolves started the second half with the same aggressive intent. A lightning counter-attack saw Jean-Ricner Bellegarde break down the left and slide a perfect ball across the six-yard box towards Strand Larsen, who was poised for a simple tap-in. However, Pau Torres produced a magnificent, last-ditch challenge to cleanly dispossess the striker and preserve the deadlock.
Kamara's Moment of Magic
As Wolves grew in confidence, Villa struggled to find their rhythm. The breakthrough, however, arrived in stunning fashion in the second half. Captain John McGinn drove down the right flank and cut the ball back to the edge of the penalty area.
There, Boubacar Kamara took a touch to control with his left foot, opened his body, and with his next touch, thumped an unstoppable, laces-driven shot that flew into the top corner, leaving Wolves goalkeeper Sam Johnstone with no chance.
The goal transformed Villa, who began to swarm their opponents. Donyell Malen, who retained his place ahead of Ollie Watkins, was denied by Johnstone after the keeper fumbled a cross. The home crowd then thought they had received a further boost when referee Chris Kavanagh went to the VAR monitor to review a poor tackle by Jhon Arias on Kamara. However, to Villa's surprise, Kavanagh upheld his original decision of a yellow card, not a red.
Nine minutes of added time ensured a nervy finish, with Martínez called into action once more to deny João Gomes, but Villa held on to claim a vital three points that cements their status as genuine top-four contenders.
